By Bruce Ndlovu
While many Zimbabweans will be rooting for him to claim his first major accolade south of the Limpopo, contemporary music star Jah Prayzah is not certain that he will attend tonight’s South African Music Awards (SAMA) ceremony.
Prayzah, alongside the elder statesman on the Zimbabwean music scene, Oliver ‘Tuku’ Mtukudzi are nominated in the Best African Artiste category where they will face stiff competition from Vee Mampeezy, Vuyo Katsha and Patoranking in the 23rd edition of South Africa’s premier music awards ceremony.
However, on a night that might crown him as a regional and continental force to reckon with, it is still not clear whether Prayzah will be able to grace the event as he is already booked for a festival appearance in Johannesburg on the same day.
This year’s edition of the awards will be held at the Sun City Bowl in Johannesburg while Prayzah will be the headline act at the Bassline Africa Day Concert that will feature veteran South African music heavyweights Thandiswa Mazwai, Ray Phiri, Vusi Mahlasela and DRC’s Baloji among other African stars.
Should he fail to attend the SAMAs, it would probably be another bittersweet moment for Jah Prayzah fans who were elated when they saw the star’s name read out at last year’s MAMAs only to have their celebrations muted when it was announced that the Mdhara Vachauya hit-maker was not there to accept his gong.
Tuku on the other hand will not be attending as he is in Ethiopia where he has gigs.
In an interview, Jah Prayzah’s manager Keen Mushapaidze said it was still unclear whether Prayzah would attend the SAMAs as it was their wish to see him attend both events.
“Attending both events is still an option. It’s still not yet decided how things will turn out on the day.
“We were hoping to get confirmation by Friday. As of now both options are still open,” he said.
After the announcement of his charge’s nomination last month, Mushapaidze had stated that they were not going to pull out of the high profile Bassline gig because it was the sort of the high profile gig that Prayzah had always wanted to headline.
“It’s useful to remember that we’ve been crying for appearances at such big festivals for a long time. So suddenly cancelling his appearance there would be disappointing on many levels,” Mushapaidze said.
On the eve of the SAMA ceremony, Mushapaidze said that they were now looking to come to a late agreement with organisers of both events.
“We’re trying to make an arrangement that will see him attend both events. So with that in mind we’re currently in negotiation with organisers of both events who’ve been very forthcoming and willing to help.”
Meanwhile, all is set for the awards ceremony which will be hosted by The ‘Queen B’ of SA television, Bonang Matheba and E! Entertainment host, Katleho Sinivasan. Entertainment will be provided by Kelly Khumalo, Khuli Chana and Kwesta among others. The Chronicle
