Gospel Choral Groups in Zimbabwe.

There is just something special about gospel music when its being sung by a large choral group, the vocal harmonies create a certain fullness which is irresistible. This is why since many can remember Gospel Choral Groups have always existed and their market will always exist. Generally these groups do not mainly rely on the lead singer but on the entire group, the unison and chemistry of the group members.

Creating and managing a successful choral group is a mammoth task as the various members will have varying goals and ambitions. This has led to many groups dissolving, man management is always a tough task, ensuring that despite the different ambitions, members can come together to achieve a similar goal (the groups goal). There needs to be some solid policies ensuring  every member is given an opportunity to showcase their talent, some are excellent songwriters some excellent singers so selecting which songs to record and who to sing is a massive headache for the group director. Favoritism kills talent and innovation.

After that there are also the logistics of taking care of all those people, catering for their basic needs so they can concentrate more on their art without worrying about the other stuff. You have to ensure everyone is remunerated adequately in a transparent and fair manner which is easier said than done.

In summary when you see a functioning choral group much respect must be given to those who are in charge of the managing the day to day business of the group.

Choral groups have been increasing in the country over the past couple of years and that is mainly due to the change in how people consume music. In the past radio and TV were the only source of music so it meant the few popular artists/groups got more than 75% of the airplay and the all the upcoming artists/groups had to share the remaining share of airplay. The rise of YouTube snd social media has changed the way people consume music, an artist can reach a million people without being played on top radio or tv stations. There is no longer the need to be loved and known by deejays to reach the masses, if your content is good the peer to peer sharing of links will get you noticed.

In Zim at the moment ZimPraise is the most known and biggest choral group. It holds a large chunk of the market, but the question is: are they the best??. Have come across a number of other choral groups and today will be sharing them with you, and also share with you whom I think are the best choral group.

1. Zim Praise

They are the biggest and most popular group, they are so popular to the extent that end of 2018 they held a music festival which attracted more than 4000 people. Zimpraise are also the oldest on the list, they have come a long way and you can understand why they are now such a known brand. They have gone through a lot of scandals, member exoduses and management reshuffling. They have however put the scandal era behind them and seem more principled and are  concentrating more on their musical exploits, traveling to other nations performing for fellow Christians in various denominations.

When it comes to the actual music, I feel there is still a lot of work to be done. The songwriting is weak and lazy on many songs. You would think that as the oldest group they should be head and shoulders above everyone when it comes to songwriting and song compositions but that is not the case. They lean more on energetic performances, popular hymns and a few popular names (Ellard, Sharon & Wencillus) to push their music. That has affected the creativity within the group which is why even with over 10 years in the music industry there is not even one classic which you can say was originally written and performed Zim Praise!!! People still remember, sing along word to word and do the dances for Tambira Jehovah by Celebration Choir, a track which was released more than 10 years back, but there is no such song for Zim Praise. Given how big the group is and the amount of talented instrumentalists they have its baffling how they still lack in that regard. More effort is needed for their music to match up to their now polished image.

Over the past couple of years they have greatly improved their image and branding as mentioned in the beggining. Their brand is bigger than ever, cannot fault it in anyway, those charged with handing the image of the band are doing a fantastic job.

Have listened and made a review of their latest project Let Love Lead, you can read it here :The New Commandment ssn 11: Let Love Lead . Was not wholly impressed with the project, all the issues I complained about on the second paragraph above are evident  throughout the project. Yes the album has some beautiful tracks such as Chonyeba & Zvose Ndezvedu but in overall it was underwhelming. Their music may work on a live show but outside that it lacks appeal. So in overall I will say ZimPraise is a group which capitalizes on popular hymns to remain popular. The strategy works but not much of a legacy will be created. They need to improve greatly on songwriting and add more variety to the lead singers (give others a chance).

2. The Vine
This group has a different, more mellow, more relaxed, more soulful sound as compared to all the other groups on this list. Their choice of sound is inspired by acapella music, given the group is made up of members of the Seventh Day Adventist church, a church which is known for it acapella music, you could not have expected anything else.

Vocally this group is the best, the harmonies these guys can produce are ridiculously good. A number of their tracks (Bambelela, Wena Uyingcwele, Come Child...etc) are so good that you cannot help but start smiling as you listen along.  Love that the lead singers do not need to scream in-order to showcase their vocal range but deliver their notes in a calm and composed manner. Much emphasis is on unison than making the lead singer shine. Because of how he music is largely rooted in acapella, the instrumental arrangements are minimal which provides a solid platform for the vocals to shine. 

In terms of popularity they are the least known in this list and that may be largely due to that many feel they sing only for SDA church members. Regardless of their low popularity they are the classiest of all the choral groups. Their branding and image is top notch can't fault them there. Just watch the performance below and you can understand what I am saying.

Their biggest challenge is to get many people to know of their existence. At the moment they seem to serve a niche segment of the market and if they want to expand their fan-base they should become more aggressive when it comes to pushing their music and brand online. Their album Musandipfuure is beautiful, did a review about it, you can read it here: (Musandipfuure Album Review), and I will be waiting to see how they will improve from there.

3. Joyfull Praise
This Gweru based group is like a less popular but more innovative version of Zim Praise. The group was formed in 2013 and has been releasing projects since then but they started to get more attention in 2018 after their  Jesus Saves Live DVD which is winning them fans all over the country. Having their live DVD recording on YouTube has helped gain them exposure.

What I love the most about this Choir is how they embrace the traditional sound of Zimbabwe. On a number of their tracks they get inspiration from traditional arrangements, tracks such as Ehekaka and Ngoro Yeminana all showcase how they embrace the traditional sound. That willingness to experiment with their sound is an important quality that will push them further.  The vocal performances are good especially the backing vocals, they are well organized and sound full, just as how a choral group should sound. When it comes to lead singers they in a way seem to suffer from the curse that affects nearly all choral groups in Zim, they are certain singers the group relies on the most, that should be handled well before those who always lead hold the group at ransom. One thing you never want in a group is for on to feel more valued and important as compared to the other.

In terms of branding they are not as known as Zim Praise but they are working hard with the limited financing they have. Their stage setup and arrangement is good and impresses all who attend their shows or watch their live performances online. Their music is however still their  biggest asset at the moment (its beautiful) but as their brand and image grows they will soon be the complete package.
 

The group knows its not the most popular and are making use of social media to push their music. Their YouTube videos are garnering some good and steady views which is a sign of their growth. They now need to keep doing more performances and uploading them to keep their fan-base growing. Another advantage they can capitalize on is the massive pool of talent they can get from Midlands State University, their faculty of music is quite vibrant, they can collaborate with them to further improve their instrumental arrangement and vocal mastery. They are definitely moving in the right direction, with the full backing of Gweru they are the choir most likely to pip Zim Praise and become the biggest Choral group in Zimbabwe.

4. Spirit Praise Worship Team

This is another Harare based Choral Group whose name is very similar to Spirit of Praise Worship from neighboring South Africa. For those like me from the onset I started to compare them to their SA namesakes. Given the name I was expecting a lot of worship music from the group but that in not the case, on their more current projects they are however leaning more to the slow tempo and worship side of music.

The group is innovative, following their online live performances some dating 3 years back one can clearly feel the improvement from year to year. In 2017 they just sounded like a ordinary Praise & Worship team that has been given a chance to record and perform but now they seem like a solid unit whose core purpose is to make music. They are also willing to experiment with their instrumental arrangements, getting inspiration from Reggae to Rhumba which is a commendable thing. Their sets include a mixture of their original song and popular hymns. In terms of lead singers they also seem to be reliant on a few singers (this is an issue of nearly all groups on this list). The group has however improved in terms of backing vocals, they are now sounding full and better controlled.

In terms of branding they still have some work to do, having a dedicated YouTube channel is a necessity for any artists in this era and they do not seem to have one. When a group has a own dedicated channel they can control how they music is being published and at the same time earn some revenue for their efforts. Their online presence is quite poor, they need to employ a PR officer who will be in charge of their online image (Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram...), its very lacking. Yes you can find their live recording on YouTube but its by another person and its affecting their views.

5. Vocal Ex
This group hails from the city on Kings & Queens koBulawayo. The inspiration for many local gospel choral groups is their successful counterpart SA choral groups and among all the groups on this list, this one resembles the SA groups the most. That is largely to similarities in Ndebele & Zulu and also there is a lot of shared culture between the Matebeleland and South Africa.

The groups as all the others mix their original songs and renditions. They however are strong when it comes to songwriting as their original songs sounds as good and sometimes better than the renditions they do. They way they structure their vocals is largely borrowed from SA gospel music  Moreover the group has some of the best backing vocals among all the groups on this list, they sound so full and satisfying. Love how they execute their medleys, they are so smooth. The instrumental arrangements are done well and complement the vocals well.

In terms of branding and exposure the group is lacking, given the talent and beautiful performances they deliver they should be much more well known by now. They are quite known in their hometown but I feel they should start looking to be known nationally. Their online presence is minimal to say in the least besides the clip of one of their lead singers doing the classic Borrowdale dance whilst wearing heels there is little footprint of the group online. The group does not even have a simple YouTube account which does not cost anything but does a massive job getting the music out there. The group needs to seriously invest in PR to grow their brand.



So ya those are the 5 local Gospel Choral Groups that I have came across and managed to listen to. The deteriorating economy is making it hard for these groups to continue to exist but I give my utmost respect to the management who are working tirelessly to ensure the  group continue to bless us with music.

Now that I have shared with you a summary of my thoughts about these groups my top 5 list goes as follows:

5. Zim Praise
4. Spirit Praise
3. Vocal Ex
2. Joyfull Praise
1. The Vine

What other groups do you know that I may have omitted and also which group is your favourite and why???

Proud_Zimbo