ZIMBABWEAN dancehall music might be an emerging genre but it has indisputably become a force to reckon with in entertainment circles.
This “ghetto gospel” has cut across age groups and backgrounds, overtaking other popular genres.
Top chanters like Winky D, Tocky Vybz, Killer T, Freeman, Nutty O, Silent Killer, Enzo Ishall, Bazooka, Master H and Poptain have become household names in the genre, while upcoming artistes like Junior Spragga, Nisha Ts, and Chillmaster are making inroads in the same line.
Every year around end of August Chipaz promotions host the King and Queen of Zim-Dancehall contest that drew attention even beyond Zimbabwean boarders. This event engages top dancehall experts including Godfatha Templeman, DJ Levels and Fantan, Etherton Beenie, Merciless among others, this serves to confirm the notion that Zim dancehall is making strides in the market.
Many promoters are hosting dancehall artistes due to their rising popularity and on Thursday (China chemadzimai) an array of artistes converge at Mashwede for a “Dancehall Shutdown” gig.
The question on critics’ minds then becomes “Is Zim dancehall a passing tide or it is here to stay?”
Although there was a chance for Zim Hip hop when artistes like Holy 10, Bling 4, Voltz and Bagga came it is arguably that Zim dancehall is still popular, basing with its relevancy over the years.
Back then when the late Soul Jah Love was alive before the inversion of Afro fusion dancehall, most of the songs had lyrics that reflect the beef that exists between the dancehall camps.
For example, Mbare chanter Seh Calaz did a song that directly hits back at Winky D’s song “Mafira Kureva,” which was against drug abuse.
Seh Calaz accuses Winky D of being a hypocrite and demands to meet him so that he can expose his hypocrisy.
Lady B’s songs were barred from air because of explicit lyrics, but amazingly she has a huge following that made her tour United Kingdom more than thrice.
By then the man of the moment “Kana Ndanyura” hit-maker Killer T has a track titled “Kundiso yaJehovah” that appears to be a gospel song, yet the title does not tally with the content.
He sings about how he is beaten by police officers while walking with his girlfriend because he did not have money to bribe them.
So what is this music portraying and promoting in the society?
In most cases, dancehall followers had reckless behaviour they expose at the gigs and the shows often turn violent.
In 2014 in Harare there was a gig which was held at City Sports and was rocked by violence as fans threw objects on stage when artistes like Platinum Prince, Seh Calaz among others were performing, causing them to leave the stage prematurely.
Despite these flaws in dancehall circles, artistes that spoke to Arts & Entertainment reporter Prince Meke expressed hope the genre will have a longer lifespan.
One upcoming musician, Spucky B, said: “I always had the love for music growing creatively making dancehall music. I just do music as part of who I am because dancehall has always been part of my journey as it is how I express my story, represent Zimbabwe connecting with people around the world.”
Another dancehall artiste, Nutty O, believes that dancehall still has a lot of potential.
“The rise of new stars is on the way. Even if you listen to the current dancehall songs being produced it is now mixed with Afro beats to match with world standards.
“Times have changed and artistes have to keep up with the times as music has evolved to better standards. Many dancehall artistes have toured the UK and South Africa this year,” he said.
A few years back when the local content policy was introduced, urban grooves musicians dominated the industry but the genre could not stand the test of time.
Now that we have Zim Hip-Hop genre will it be able to remove the pace Zimdancehall has created so far.
It remains to be seen if Zim dancehall is to be removed on its position.
