Posts

Showing posts from August, 2016

Video Review : Takura - Ma Obama

Image
Takura is making his name in the hip hop circles. His smash hit Zino Irema is receiving a lot of love from the locals. The visuals for Zino Irema are superb and are arguably the best on the hip hop scene right now. Now he has released the visuals for his follow up jam, Ma Obama . He has been teasing us with some snaps from the video shoot for some time now and its great to finally get to watch the full video. The video was directed by Mr Elders and he did a fantastic job. The setting of the shots is just on point. The angles were spot on. The directing is done very well, its an entertaining video. They went more for giving fans a visual feast than storytelling and that's not necessarily a bad thing, especially when the end product is this good. Love the attention and effort Takura is putting in his visuals. He has released two videos this year and both of them deserve to be nominated among the best videos for the year come awards season. I'm loving Takura's h

Album Review: Jah Prayzah - Mudhara Vachauya

Image
The most anticipated album for 2016 is now out. Jah Prayzah is undoubtedly the biggest artist in Zimbabwe right now, he is already bordering being labelled a music legend at just 29 years of age!!!!!!. He released his much anticipated album Mudhara Vachauya on the 12th of August. A lot of of work from his management team and financial muscle from sponsors was put into place to ensure the launch was the biggest and best in the country and it did set the standard. Now the major issue is how will the album fare?? how will is compare to the brilliant Jerusarema from last year?? Alick Macheso released Tsoka Dzerwendo earlier in the year and more like Jah Prayzah's album the management and sponsors also dug deep to make it a success but now more than 3 months later the album is faltering and falling from a lot of playlists, fans are reverting back to his previous albums. So how does Mudhara Vachauya fare?? The album contains 11 and below is a track by track review of the album: 1

Zim Artists say Zero Tolerance To Corruption.

Image
Corruption has destroyed our Country. Social structures have been destroyed becasue of corruption. The economy has suffered due to corruption. The country is falling into shambles because of corruption.  It has become a norm now, the young kids know nothing but corruption. As a nation we need to uproot corruption and each and everyone has to play a part as in order to get rid of corruption. If we all rise up with one voice we can defeat this cancer called corruption that is destroying our nation. T Man of Mount Zion has gathered together a number of artists to start the fight against corruption. For some time now many have been calling for local artists to lead the fight against corruption, for them to use their popularity to good use.  Below is a compilation of the tracks from the various artists, download and share... Lets unite and fight this cancer. We must get our country back.... ZERO TOLERANCE TO CORRUPTION Proud_Zimbo

Freeman - Mangoma Ihobho Visuals

Image
Freeman currently has the best album of 2016, its being loved all over the country. Even those who were not Freeman's fans have warmed up to the artists and are also enjoying the album. He has now released the visuals to all the track on the album. Among dancehall artists the HKD Boss is one of the best when it comes to visuals so was really looking forward to the visuals.  He released 7 visuals of selected tracks from Mangoma Ihobho. 1. Zvemufirimu Lovely visuals for a lovely track. Love the setting. Great work on the directing. 2. Vhura Mukova Nice visuals for this motivational jam. Love the suits. 3. Handimurove ft Daruler This is a fantastic track and the visuals did justice to the track. Its a personal track and the video does very well to show that. It only Freeman was great in impersonating a broken person, Daruler was also on point as the heart-breaker. Great acting from the artist. The setting and directing is on point. Lovely visuals.

Track Review: Dereck Mpofu & Cynthia Mare - Dzoka Kumba

Image
Dereck Mpofu is not a name that many are familiar with, for those who do not know about him, he is the guy that gave us the superb track Chisikana Changu Zimbabwe . Nearly every track he releases is part of his Green Ambassador role, more about promoting and protecting the environment. This time he has however stepped out of his ambassador mode and teamed up with award winning songbird Cynthia Mare for  Dzoka Kumba . Lets see how he fares??  Love the instrumental here, the keyboard work is done very well. The instrumental arrangement is uptempo with this dancehall/ragga type of feel. The reggeaton influenced bass line makes the song easy to dance to. The guitar work is also on point. The production is very well done, great work to the production team, it sounding wonderful. I bet this track will be more fun during a live performance becasue it already has the elements and structure that makes for a great live experience. Dzoka Kumba is a track about missing your other half

Track Review: Tehn Diamond - Lead The Way

Image
It now heating up as we get closer to the release date for Tehn's Debut album A Few Good Poems. He released the first single 2062 a couple of days back and it got his fans hyped up, personally it's a good track, enjoyed it but  like I said his next track(s) will determine whether I join the fans wagon or not. He has now released the second single from his upcoming album, lets see how it fares?? Yagi Dojo is in charge of the production for this one also and like he did on 2062 its sounding awesome. This is the hip hop am fond off, the instrumental does not distract me from the vocals, in contrast it leads me to the vocals. Love the away we go loop that is playing in the background, its a lovely touch. The track has a lot of RnB elements which give the track a mellow chilled vibe. The overall production of the track is standard, the vocals are well audible and it all balanced. Great work on the production. Lead The Way is a love jam!! quite surprising coming from

Track Review: Trevor Dongo - Shoko Rerudo

Image
The King of RnB is back with a new jam. Trevor has created a strong brand for himself with his consistency. He has been on top of his game for years now, thanks to his classic albums such as Ruvarashe and First Verse.  Since he tore the local music charts apart with Ndashamisika in 2012 he has been a household name, an icon many might say. Despite not being able to recreate or reach the Ndashamisika levels he has been delivering some lovely tracks.  At the moment Trevor is currently working on a new album and this new single is a glimpse of whats to come!!! without much chatting lets see how it fares?? The track was produced at Kenako Studio and they did a great job. The track has a nice modern feel to it, in some instances it reminds me of Dj Ace Tanner and Paul Martin's Made To Love . The instrumental has this lovely feel good vibe about it. The overall production is on point, its sounding awesome. Great work by the Kenako Studios crew. Shoko Rerudo is a track one s

Kombi's!! The New Radio!!

Image
Growing up if an artist wanted to become a household name they would need to get airplay on national radio stations. Traditionally being played on radio was a sign of good things to come, or in the least it provided one with a platform on which to succeed. Also being played on radio means that an artist would be entitled to royalties at the end of the month, a little something for all the hard work put in. In Zimbabwe such a system has died down, the Zimbabwe Music Rights Association (ZIMURA) has been erratic in disbursing the royalties and also the process for one to get airplay is very challenging especially if you're an upcoming artist. So in the end many artists just lost hope of ever getting a chance to have a breakthrough.  The phenomenal rise of ZimDancehall has opened up new avenues of marketing and exposure for artists. Since way back music was always being played on public transport but since the popularity of Zim dancehall the Kombi's evolved from just pla

Track Review: Afrodizzay ft Simba Tagz - Party Start Now

Image
Got to know about the duo named Afrodizzay from the track I Dunno which they released a couple of months back. They are back again with a new track and this time they feature Showtime Records rapper Simba Tagz who is having a great year. On  I Dunno Afrodizzay showed a lot of promise, although it did not get much airplay it's a lovely track and from then I wanted to see how they will develop going forward. So without wasting much time lets see how the Party Start Now fares?? Afrodizzay mostly majors in afro beats but they switched a bit on this track, Afro Gong as they label the sound!!. Its more of a fusion between dancehall and hip hop with a few kwaito elements. The result is a nice bouncy track. The fusion was done very well, great work on the production. The overall production is standard. Like the name implies the track is about getting the party started. Its one of those track you bump to when your going to a party or one the DJ drops when he wants to get the p

Album Review: Leonard Zhakata - Mutunga Dzose

Image
Leonard Karikoga Zhakata or Baba Chamu as he is affectionately know by his fans is an icon in the music game, some may say he is a legend. He is well know for his sharp socially conscious lyrics which cute very deep. Very deep to the extent that he was banned from being played on radio stations due to his politically charged lyrics. Regardless of that he became the youngest artists to sell over 100 000 copies with his debut album Maruva Enyika in 2004. Personally I believe he is one of the best wordsmiths we have in the music genre, he is just that fantastic. So when he said he will be releasing a new album was anxious to see if he will deliver after some time being quiet and with him being a Pastor or Bishop ( i'm not really sure ) wanted to see how that would affect his music. So listened to the album for some weeks and now am ready to give you my review. The album contains 7 tracks and will be doing a track by track review of the whole album below: 1. Pemberai Navo T

Track Review: Toga ft Chioneso - Eddymore

Image
House music is growing at a slow but quite satisfying pace. The quality of house tracks being released on the local scene is just awesome. Guys like, DJ Stavo, Skaiva, Reverb 7 are at the forefront of this movement. The good thing is that a host of other new producers are emerging and this will definitely help push the genre forward. On that note came across this track titled Eddymore and straightaway wanted to share the track with fellow Zimbos. Toga was in charge of the productions and he did a fantastic job. The instrumental is sounding very good. One can hear the influences of Dj Clock's smash hit  Pluto (Remember Me) on this track, especially on the bass guitar. The saxophone work is also done quite brilliantly. Love the instrumental. The overall production is standard. Great work on the production. The track is about those fathers who always spend money recklessly without giving a thought to the ir families. They spend the money set aside for rent, school fees and

Gary Tight ft Willom Tight - Tight Tune

Image
Gary Tight won me over with the tracks Ndazonyara feat Jah Prayzah and Toite Basa feat Willom Tight and since then have been closely following him. When he released a new track was quite anxious to see how he will develop from the standard he had set for himself. This new track is a large departure from his usual afro jazz type of sound to a more afro beat kind of vibe. It was produced at the Kenako Studio, the go to studio for all afro beat enthusiasts. The instrumental is sounding quite good nothing out of the ordinary. Kenako did a good job on the production for this one. The track is made for the good times. Its about enjoying yourself and hitting some dances on the dancefloor. Father and Son collaborated to give Zimbos a song they could dance to and forget their worries for some moments. The vocals performances were okay. Gary did not sound as good as he sounded on Ndazonyara but for this type of music it worked quite well. Willom Tight was sounding like Dj Smylie a

Nutty O - I Will Never

Image
Nutty O is one extremely talented artist. His vocals are always on point, his style can match up with the best in Africa. Included him among my top 10 artists to watch in 2016, now 8 months into the year he is still releasing some awesome tracks but is yet to find that crossover hit that will endear him with the majority of Zimbos. Regardless I still stand by him and believe he has what it takes to penetrate the African market faster than the other local dancehall artists.  The dancehall genre is so congested and its hard to keep up with all the released tracks. Nutty O released a couple of track recently, the most known among the pack is  Don't Do It Alone  which is getting quite a lot of attention and receiving a commendable amount of airplay on the urban radio stations. However for me the track I Will Never managed to catch my attention the most because it applies more to my life right now that the other tracks. The track is on the Emotions Riddim, which is sublime. I&

Album Review: Verseless - Antithesis: Light

Image
Albums are a great thing, it gives us the listeners and fans the insight into the life/mind of the artist. Its much more complex when the album is by a producer, who offers very little to no vocals on the album. Such attempts either hit or miss the spots. Verseless has given us some worth listening to EP's and was anxious to see how he will fare on his debut album! The album Antithesis: Light, finally dropped and after some time listening to it am ready to make an informed review, So here we go: The album consists of 13 track and will be doing a track by track review below. One thing that caught my attention are the artists featured, one will think Verseless was gonna fill his album with the known big guys but he stuck with the unknown and upcoming. Its either he did not want to compromise his vision/sound ( with bigger artists egos tend to come into play ) so he chose those guys who will perform/deliver as he expected or he just didn't have the cash to pay the bigger guys

Track Review : Tehn Diamond - 2062

Image
When it comes to teasing and infuriating fans noone does it better that Tehn Diamond. Last year he said his much awaited Perfect Tehn was finished and now 8 months later nothing. Beginning of the year he then said he will release an EP titled a Few Good Poems in the first half of the year then the Perfect Tehn later in the year. We now in the second half of 2016 and as usual no EP yet !!! He then said no more Perfect Tehn, will only be giving you A Few Good Albums album on the 30th of September. It keeps changing with Tehn. Truthfully the hype has died out as of now, some fans just don't care anymore....to regain people's trust he needs to work extra hard and remind us why we should expect his album again. These past couple of week he has been trying to do exactly that, he released two tracks nearly two weeks ago and now he has released another jam. The first two were okay, ( enjoyed Sekele more and that's largely because  I loved the original track a lot ), the new on

Track Review: Tony Fresh x Slizzy AJ & Chiphsip - Kare Haagare Ari Kare

Image
Hip Hop is making its own strides outside the view and attention of many. Love the influx of new artists into the game, because like I said: Local hip hop need new players, the big guys have done their best and raised hip hop to where it is now but its the new guys who will usher it onto a new level. So Slizzy AJ in introduced me to this track from his Kunta Family, was a bit busy these past weeks so could not do a proper review. Got to listen to the track and it really surprised me. Was expecting to hear those generic trap music and I was proven wrong. The track was produced by Tony Fresh and Slizzy AJ and they did a superb job. The track has a heavy traditional mbira/marimba vibe which instantly got me hooked. Its also well structured and has a nice bass line. The overall production is standard, its sounding very good. The only constant in this world is change and this track is depicting that. Life changes, times change and as modern people we must be able to change with

Proud Zimbo's Top 5 Tracks Of July

Image
So the month of July is done and dusted meaning its that time again for my top 5 tracks of the month. Bryan K's Heavy Machine was the top track for the month of June. This month managed to do a review of 6 tracks namely: Courtney Antipas - Bang , Reverb 7 & Simba Tagz - Tamirira , Takura - MaObama , Jam Signal - Orlando , Josh ft Elli-ot - Feeling Happy & Cindy Munyavi - Dai . So will a Reverb 7 production top this month again??!!??  5. Josh ft Elli-ot - Feeling Happy Lovely feel good track, made to put a smile on your face. 4. Courtney Antipas - Bang Superb instrumental and nice bars from Zim's finest Christian Rapper 3. Cindy Munyavi - Dai Lovely track from the songbird and it also came with some nice visuals. 2. Reverb 7 & Simba Tagz - Tamirira Superb instrumental and some on point lyrics. 1. Zim Jam Signal - Orlando Fantastic instrumental, love the guitar work. Nice vocals...all around solid jam. The band is