LIFE takes unpredictable twists and turns that set people apart from paths they would have been pursuing.
When people become adults, they tend to let go of things they really love to focus on other responsibilities. But, as fate would have it, one can never run away from their passion.
This has been the case of Melyssa Dlodlo, a rising musician, who grew up in Eastlea and Waterfalls suburbs in Harare.
After quitting music twice, the melody in her heart refused to be silenced.
Dlodlo realised her passion for music required patience and not approval. At one point, she quit because she felt her efforts were going unnoticed.
However, a burning desire to create music began to flicker once more and she found her way back to the recording studio.
NewsDay Weekender caught up with Dlodlo who shared her music journey, lifestyle and other things that have shaped her being.
When passion never dies
I quit music twice to focus on other things in the corporate sector and the reasons were similar on both occasions.
I was tired because the music industry is frustrating and sometimes it feels like all your work is going unnoticed, your effort is not enough and no one is listening to you, and you are wasting your youth.
However, when you are passionate about something you always find your way back to it.
I have a lot of options in my life, but music is the one closest to my heart. Everytime I quit music, I would find myself in things that involved music such as karaoke because those are the things that make me happy.
Meeting up with musicians as well and going to events where I would meet musicians gave me a burning desire that I desperately needed to create music once again.
Heartbreak songs
The heartbreak songs I write have nothing to do about my personal life.
I feel like it is just an easy avenue to take when you are writing music. I find it easy to write music in that way because I know it speaks to people.
New project
My new song is called Ndichadiwa featuring Delroy Shewe, who hogged the limelight with his collaboration with Saintfloew on a track titled Superstar.
The song talks about hope to find love. The song speaks to people that are not yet in relationships or people that are in relationships that may not be working, but have hope of finding true love.
This collaboration has taught me that two people are better than one and as they say, “the more, the merrier”. I had the opportunity to learn new things that added value to my creativity and imagination.
Apart from Ndichadiwa, I have done projects like Kuhope, One time, Ndoda Iwewe featuring Nyasha David, Talk About It, Chengeta and Woman, among others.
Acting
Besides my love for music, I am involved in film. I have been acting for a couple of years now. I have been involved in at least 10 productions.
Some of the films I have been involved in like Dirty Necklace and Kuda Zvinhu are aired on the local national television channel Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation.
I have also done social media skits with comedians such as Admire “Bhutisi” Kuzhangaira and Tinaye Chiketa.
Acting comes naturally for me. I love it because it is both fun and a bit challenging because I step out of my personality to imitate a different character.
Travelling
I am an outgoing person who loves to travel with great company. My hobbies evolve around good company and I love to spend time with people dear to me.
I like solo dates. I take myself out for lunch or dinner dates and things like that make me happy.
When I travel, I gain a lot of experience about different things and I find new inspiration.
It broadens my imagination as an artiste and when I come back home, my song writing skills shift in a certain way, adding a pop of colour to my projects inspired by different things.
When I spend time with people that add value to my creativity, I find myself free to express myself.
I think it is important for artists to be surrounded by positive people that push them to achieve more.
Hiding the troubled soul
People just look at you and assume everything is fine. I like to look good and I always make sure to be on point which makes it difficult for people to see you outside of that appearance.
It is very difficult for me to open up to people whenever I am going through something.
Every individual has got their rainy days and I have a fair share of my own but I am still trying to learn the art of speaking out.
I write how I feel sometimes through advice from a friend who told me to put things on paper whenever I am going through certain things.
It might not help me at that moment, but eventually, I get over it. When I am on my happy days, I read through the diary to have an appreciation that no situation is permanent.
Physical fitness
I like to work out and I go to the gym four or five times a week. Initially, my goal was to lose weight because I had a crazy obsession for a slim body.
However, through growing up and understanding my body, I learnt that keeping yourself physically active is not always about the aesthetic, but your overall health including mental health.
I felt relieved on bad days when I went to the gym. It lifted my mood and it still does.
During days when I genuinely feel lazy, I go to the court to play tennis. It is also part of physical exercising when I find myself not in the mood to lift weights in the gym.
My friends also play a big role in my emotional well-being. They keep me sane when I am losing my mind. I have a very small circle and those people understand me and they are very close to me.
Finding balance
Balance in life is hard, but I think the best thing is doing what you really need to do as an individual.
Do what you must do and show up when you have to. I keep reminding myself that above everything else, when trying to find balance in life, I try to put things that make me more colourful on top, things that I love to do, things that I am passionate about and things that make me want to push harder.
Sacrifices
There are generally other things I have decided to let go of when I chose to become an artiste. There are certain things I cannot be found doing and that has to do with my brand.
I want to represent myself in the best way possible and that goes for the way that I speak, handle conflicts and interact with others.
Networking with other creatives
My desire is to interact with a lot of other artists because I have realised that it is very beneficial. Aligning myself with like-minded people yields better results and broadens my mind. There is always something new to learn from every encounter.
