Professor fails to wow Bulawayo crowd

By Bruce Ndlovu

BULAWAYO – South African kwaito superstar, Professor gave a lacklustre display at Jock and Saddle in Bulawayo on Thursday night. The Kwaito kingpin gave a below par performance and the crowd was hardly excited by anything on the night.

So put off was the multi-award-winning artiste by the crowd’s lukewarm response that he stopped the performance of one of his songs and complained that the crowd was not as lively as the one he had performed for in Harare the previous night. Professor performed at Harare’s Circus Night Club on Independence eve.

“Yesterday in Harare I performed in front of a crowd that had more life than you guys,” he said.

The lacklustre crowd was a surprise in Bulawayo which is considered a more House and Kwaito music stronghold than the capital. Although Professor was the major drawcard of the night, the night was also graced by a number of local acts that also failed to warm up the rather cold crowd.

Rap quartet Kasi Lunatics delivered an energetic performance that did move the crowd a bit as did fellow rapper POY who also was given the cold shoulder by the crowd who went about with their business as they waited for Professor’s appearance on stage.

POY’s chants asking for the crowd’s response to some of his lines that were intended to hype up the crowd were snubbed, with only one or two revellers reacting to his calls.

A host of DJs lit the night somewhat, with the crowd taking a liking to their work behind the decks in contrast to the lack of appetite they showed for live performances.

Professor made his appearance at the venue in a sleek white limousine, accompanied by a big entourage that included his brother and fellow performer Character and also boasted a lot of local ladies.

The artiste who was relaxed in the club’s VIP lounge, started his performance well after midnight, and was greeted by loud cheers from the excited crowd.

Professor did not appear in his trademark police uniform that got him in trouble a few months back in South Africa. Instead the he was dressed in a more conventional outfit, wearing a red outfit complete with a matching cap.

Prof, as he is known to his ever swelling legion of fans, performed a number of his hits that included Imota and the Character assisted X. Songs from his chart topping latest album, Orientation, he performed included One Night Stand and Fingerprints.

Professor finally seemed to have made some headway with the crowd after he had rebuked them for their lack of life, as they showed some warmth to his music, with many chanting along to his lyrics.

Professor finished his performance after 3am and was followed by local DJs that included the Djembe Monks who helped those that stay behind at the venue wind down the night after the star of the night had left the building.

One reveller who spoke to Saturday Leisure, Philani Gumbo, gave Professor’s performance the thumbs but added that the crowd contributed to the unexciting mood at the venue.

“Professor is one of the biggest artistes at the moment so we expected a bigger crowd than this. However his own performance was good but it would have helped if the crowd was more in tune with the excitement of the artistes that performed tonight,” he said. The Chronicle