The Winky D, Jah Prayzah dominance

By Bruce Ndlovu

A few years ago, showbiz observers and analysts started touting the idea that the country’s music industry had a “big five”.

These were five artistes who, as the country’s economic fortunes took a dip, still commanded a large enough following to bring multitudes to their shows.

Even as belts tightened, Alick Macheso, Sulumani Chimbetu, Jah Prayzah, Winky D and Oliver Mtukudzi could still find a way to smile all the way to the bank when all was said and done.

Fast forward a couple of years and while all those five men at the top of the food chain, two in particular now stand out.

After releasing albums that gave birth to multiple hit songs, Jah Prayzah and Winky D are now clearly the alpha males on the local music landscape.

Times have been tough for artistes across the board. A biting cash crunch that refuses to release its grip on the ordinary Zimbabwean has seen shows dry up for artistes.

This sad state of affairs is compounded by the fact that musicians had now come to rely on them as their sole source of income as royalties and record sales ceased being a factor long ago.

In Bulawayo, for example, major shows only come once in a blue moon, with artistes generally having to make do with cameo performances at clubs and smaller venues.

Amid this drought, Winky and Jah have been dining like aristocrats at the top table of Zimbabwean music.

This week on Facebook, urban music enthusiast and critic Plot Mhako bemoaned the fact the two were now an obvious and expected feature on posters that advertised upcoming shows that feature foreign superstars.

Mhako, who received support from his followers, felt that the announcement that the two would be the supporting act when Beenie Man returns to Zimbabwe was obvious.

This followed hot on the heels of the duo being billed as the main supporting acts when Anthony B performed at Star FM’s fifth anniversary gig. Jah also shared the bill with Mafikizolo back in April while Winky did the same when KO came to Bulawayo during the Trade Fair weekend.

While a few other acts have been sprinkled in to spice things up during those gigs, this is a pattern that has been repeated countless times over the past year or so.

Their total dominance has also been plain to see from award ceremonies, where they have vied for the major gongs on offer both at the Nama and Zima ceremonies, with the Male Artistes of the Year award reduced to a two-horse race over the past three years.

The foreign shows have also been piling up. From Johannesburg to London, the sounds of the Gafa and the Soja are fast becoming the new staple to add to Tuku who for a long time was the dish that those outside the country consumed.

With all this in mind, some now believe that the two are unintentionally taking the food out of other artistes’ mouths as they are the go-to choices whenever big name stars come to perform in Zimbabwe. These gigs, few and far between as they are, come with more cash than ordinary run of the mill shows featuring a cast of exclusively local acts.

For promoters however, the decision to bank on Winky and Jah Prayzah is purely financial. With revellers wary of straining their wallets, many are unwilling to take a chance on acts that might not attract the desired numbers to shows. Winky and Jah have become the most bankable local acts, with promoters confident of making a profit or at least breaking even when they put their faces on posters.

“Promoting shows is risky now because people don’t have money. That is why you see they’re so few live shows throughout the year. You can’t blame promoters for choosing acts that they know will make money. Music promotion is a business after all,” said Mduduzi Mdlongwa of 3D promotions.

According to Mhako however, promoters are taking the easy way out as Beenie Man, an international act, has enough clout to pull a huge crowd on his own. With this in mind, it would not have hurt the promoters to invite lesser stars to fill the supporting acts slots as they would have been guaranteed a big crowd anyway.

But what do artistes themselves think of the popularity of these two bulls that are taking up all the prime grazing land.

Rapper Cal_vin, who ironically is on every bill when there’s a show in Bulawayo, says that the two are merely reaping the fruits of years’ worth of investment in their careers.

“The game is always going to be run by a few but occupied by many. It’s true that Jah and Winky are always the main acts when foreign acts come and you know why? They put in work earlier in their careers. Their marketing is also great which is where most artistes are failing.

“I don’t blame promoters for going with those with a guaranteed and cultivated fan base. As a promoter you’re trying to make money and doing what they think is the best for their shows. Winky and Jah didn’t start yesterday. People are seeing it more because it only started to make sense now. We just need to emulate their hard work,” Cal_vin said.

For other artistes however, breaking the dominance of the two might mean taking themselves out of their comfort zones. Leonard Zhakata took the country by surprise when he came out tops in the Radio Zimbabwe Top 50 end of year chart.

The music veteran, thought to be a relic of a bygone age by some, proved that away from the dazzle of social media and HD music videos, grassroots support can take artistes to the apex of the Zimbabwean music scene.

This is also something that Bulawayo’s Jeys Marabini has been trying with his Thath’ uMusic Thatha Community Concerts which have taken him to venues usually thought of as unfashionable by other artistes.

“The concert is taking music to the people. Most of my fans stay in townships and people were hungry for my music that is why I’m giving people what they need,” Marabini said.

While the afro-jazz musician believes he has found a formula that works for him, it remains to be seen whether artistes around the country can break the stranglehold that Winky and Jah have established. Sunday News