Representatives of the Harare Province in the Zimbabwe Music Crossroads finals, Savannah Afros, claimed the title on Saturday in the competition which was held at the First Street Mall in Harare.
Savannah Afros emerged the winners after battling it out with 10 other groups from different provinces. African Tribe from Bulawayo came second in the competition while Hungwe Stars claimed the third position.
For winning this year’s finals, Savannah Afros booked themselves a ticket to represent the country at the Music Crossroads Inter-regional finals set for Maputo on February 8 to February 13.
The first runner-up, African Tribe will also be joining Savannah Afros at the inter-regional finals where they will compete with groups from Southern Africa.
In an interview on the sidelines of the finals, director of Music Crossroads, Mathias Bangure said, “I am happy that the programme proceeded very well despite that the rains disturbed us a little bit.
“I also need to congratulate Savannah Afros for winning the finals, they were competing against some of the best groups in Zimbabwe, but they rose to the occasion and earned themselves a ticket to represent the country in the inter-regional finals.
“What they need to do right now is to polish their act and make sure they give their best when they compete in the next finals set for Maputo,” said Bangure.
The winning group at the inter-regional competition will be awarded a slot to go on a European tour. Bangure also extended his appreciation to the Culture Fund and Africalia organisations which sponsored the event.
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“Without support from these organisations this year’s finals wouldn’t have been a success, we thank them very much for their assistance.
“Our sincere gratitude also goes to the Zimbabwe College of Music and some of the country’s established musicians including Isaac Chirwa for facilitating workshops which were held a week before the competition,” said Bangure.
Fashionable Afro Shangara outfits, Club Shanga and Mokoomba featured as guest artists and put up good performances. Afro Savannah did a good job and their stage work was sizzling, but what is left now is for them to aim higher.
“I takes a lot to win at the competition, but once you polish up your act it becomes easy and manageable.
“They must work as a team and go all the way and do the country proud by winning the inter–regional finals,” said Perseverance Mataranyika a member of Club Shanga.
Since its inception in 1996, Music Crossroads has grown to become the largest and most popular youth cultural initiative in sub-Saharan Africa offering unique opportunities for young people aged between 15 and 25 year from marginalised backgrounds.
