Is this the Zimdancehall we want?

By The Standard | Aug. 28, 2019 | 3 Min read

A YOUNG boy, evidently under the age of 18, chants discourteous lyrics depicting an act of sex in freestyle that draws wild cheers from a group of what appears to be older fellows in the Chillspot Records Studio.

Soundtrack Kennedy Nyavaya

In less than a week, the snippet of one Taonga or “Mzukuru waSekuru VaMako” has amassed close to 4 000 views on famed music producer Levels’ Instagram page.

Keen followers of Zimdancehall, particularly those familiar with new trends, know that he is neither the first nor last of such young sensations the internet will unveil. Of late, there have been countless other videos of the same nature circulating online.

Remember the vile chants from Danso Dict of the Kasong Kemagaro in 2017, Silent Killer’s uncensored freestyles during his formative years and more recently, the Mad Viper’s venomous disses.

The country’s ghettos are surely an oasis of talent that keeps on oozing, but the new wave has raised eyebrows on the genre’s social parameters and moral compass.

Without sanctifying the pioneers of Zimdancehall about a decade ago, one can attest that back then, the lyrical content was a cut-across message, mainly chronicling the struggles and hope for the ghetto dwellers.

This is not to say they never disgorged obscenities or to popularised unruly behaviour, but the measure was surmountable.

Keep Reading

Fast forward to today, the country has seen some of the most bizarre mannerisms and filthy lyrics none would ever have imagined gaining traction in a society once seen as conservative.

Months ago, a short video clip featuring one Van Choga and another small boy with white powder smeared all over their faces hogged the limelight, albeit for a short stint. The duo is recorded barking hardly audible lyrics and jumping all over the place in what one can easily categorise as sheer lunacy.

This was until days later when I saw the same character, this time with a clean face, appearing at Seh Calaz’s new studio where he could be getting his big break to professionally record music.

Then it hit me that if he could attract the attention of such an influential voice, then crazy is definitely the new normal and that is a sign of more to come into the Zimdancehall sphere.

The quest for attention in an excessively competitive music scene seems to redefine creativity, ushering in distinctive styles of delivery that have left many questioning the sanity or soberness of most in the urban movement.

The new wave, devoid of depth, has seen artistes blur the line between art and absurdity in swift fashion that has left many revisiting the foundation of this movement.

Names like Jah Master, X Faya and Ndunge Yut are virtually new in the game, but all bear a similar claim to fame and that is a hard to understand demeanour, coupled with lyrics not so easy to decipher.

Too casual to be called music and a little too flat to fit in the comedy bracket, the new style is probably something one can understand and enjoy better when in a drunken stupor. It fizzles almost as quickly as it tickles one’s fancy and for this characteristic, it could be the true definition of “bubble gum” music except that it hardly passes as music.

Could it be the reason why established names like Winky D (pictured), Tocky Vibes and Killer T seem to have diverted from the initial sound, although they remain within the genre’s pioneer bracket?

The question lingers, but one thing is certain; this is not the Zimdancehall that stole the hearts of many and spread like wildfire across the country in its formative years.

Perhaps before a puzzled Zimdancehall fan begins to wonder what has gone wrong with this new school, they should ask themselves whether this is the Zimdancehall we want or not? If not, what should be done to bring sanity back into the genre?

Kennedy Nyavaya writes in his personal capacity. He can be contacted on [email protected]