Rising musician Mukudzei Mukombe, who is popularly known as Jah Prayzah, has challenged his fellow youthful musicians to desist from using backtracks and employ live bands to ensure flexible and appealing performances during live shows.
Speaking to NewsDay ahead of the Reggae/Dancehall Cup Clash slated for City Sports Centre tomorrow, Jah Prayzah said the recruitment of instrumentalists had helped him to cross-over to mainstream music.
“Our local fans do not enjoy seeing musicians using backtracks because they are used to witnessing various stage antics from live bands,” said Jah Prayzah.
“There are many talented young musicians that are pursuing dancehall and reggae music in the underground and some of their songs are popular. However, the menacing evil called piracy deprives a musician of income from music sales and the only way is to stage live shows. The challenge is to entertain audiences at live shows and the best weapon when facing the challenge is a live band.”
Jah Prayzah started, like most of his peers, pursuing the urban grooves genre and his decision to use a live band became an important turning point in his career. He is now one of the most sought-after musicians on the local scene and seems determined to claim a place in the top five list of singers in the country.
His eight-member group, which he termed Third Generation, is one of the most promising youthful outfits. When the dreadlocked musician performs at the Reggae/Dancehall Cup Clash, he will likely give his peers a lesson or two about the importance of a live band.
Most emcees and musicians that will battle for honours in this interesting contest have promised to make the event memorable.
Emcees will take turns to showcase their skills on the turntables and on stage while musicians that have released popular songs before will be looking forward to giving their fans the very best of stage performance.
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The cup clash will see a number of young musicians like King Shady, Guspy Warrior, Lady Squander, King Labash, Cello Culture and Freeman taking turns to entertain revellers.
A contest of emcees will precede the musicians’ clash. Audiences will judge the best emcee and the winner will walk away with a prize. The cup clash is being hosted by Stereo 1 International in conjunction with Chipaz Promotions.
Patson Chimbodza of Chipaz Promotions said he had decided to add Jah Praizah with his full band to encourage rising dance- hall musicians to use live bands.
“I am known for organising sungura gigs, but I feel we also have to promote these young dancehall musicians,” said Chimbodza.
“We have roped in Jah Prayzah because he is a good example of how these reggae and dancehall artists can rise and compete with established musicians in the country. We want to encourage them to use live bands and be competitive like Jah Prayzah and Winky D who have moved from backtracks and formed their own bands.”
