Jah Prayzah - Hokoyo Album Review

This album was among the 10 Albums I have been looking forward to in 2020. Jah Prayzah took a sabbatical break last year, a move which I supported as it gave people time for his fans to really listen to his last album Chitubu. That also afforded him time to craft his next album without rushing himself in order to maintain the one album per year release schedule. The new album titled Hokoyo has been finally released and as expected it’s the most talked about thing in showbiz, JP is the most popular artist in Zim so such buzz is a given.

Going into this new album have a couple of questions; 1. Was the sabbatical break helpful for him and his music??, 2. Is he going to develop his sound more from Chitubu and if so how is he going to do so?? And lastly 3. What role will this album will play in JP’s domination of Africa goal. Got myself a copy of the album and today will be sharing my thoughts on the album and also hopefully get answers to the above mentioned questions.

As usual will be doing a track by track review of the album:

1 Hokoyo

The was the last track released prior to the album launch, the track that was to chosen create the hype for the album and it did a good job at that. It’s a good jam, the production is done well, the chorus is the winning part of the track. On the track JP is advising his kid of the challenges that he will face as he grows up, he is telling her how some people never appreciate you, they will be cruel and wish the worst for you.

2. Miteuro feat Zimpraise

JP teamed up with Zimpraise for this superb jam, the qualities and attributes of the two entities blended well together. The track is well produced and the energy is on point. The vocals of JP and the fullness of the backing vocals by Zimpraise are all on point The track talks about the need which many have for our prayers to be answered. We fast, spend nights in the mountains hoping for our situations to change. It’s a track many Zimbos can relate to given how thing never seem to progress positively in this country. This will be an early favourite of many.

3. Donhodzo

This track follows a sound that he has used a lot over the years, it feels like a mix between Emerina and Sendekera. It’s a sound his die-hard fans love and he does not seem to be leaving it behind anytime soon, to others it seems like he is just recycling tracks. The production is done well, the arrangement as explained before is familiar. The track has the signature JP energy which will get his fans dancing and this is a track you can expect a lot of bars to be playing when they open.

4. Chiramwiwa

This is quite a lovely jam, love the feel of the track. The production is done well, the instrumental and vocals are well done and complement each other very well. This track is like Tuku’s Dzoka Uyamwe mixed with the prodigal son’s story, a parent is saying to their kid; you can always come back home, I will welcome you back with open arms.

5. Eriya

This track is Inspired by a similar track from the ZCC church. JP added his touch on top of the iconic brass progressions from ZCC and the end result is a track that sound good, the production is well done, the brass stole the show. Tracks like these are fail proof especially in this overly religious society we live in in Zimbabwe and that will ensure this track will be a favourite of many. Judging by the lyrics of the track, JP specifically crafted them with church people in mind, throwing in the name of Prophet Makandiwa is a clear clickbait move by JP. I do not know how those from ZCC feel about this track though, if there are any member of ZCC reading this share your thoughts below.

6. Dzirere

This track has that Mathias Mhere/Blessing Shumba feel to it, it’s a different feel to what we have come to expect from JP. The production is good; the track has a relaxed vibe to it which I quite enjoy. The track speaks about the old culture of raising kids with the goal of having them take care of you in return. Parents hope their kids grow up and become successful and that success will in turn translate to a better life for them.

7. Mwana Wamambo

This track again falls in familiar territory; the arrangement of the instrumental is familiar to Dzamutsana, its sounds good but it’s all too familiar. JP knows he will not go wrong with his fans with this sound so he is going to utilize it to the maximum. The vocals are good, JP is singing about risking it all and asking the daughter of the chief to marry him, he knows the challenges and threats that are coming his way but he is ready to risk it all.

8. Wenge

This easily became an early favourite of mine, love traditional music when it done this good. The production is done well, the instrumental arrangement in on point, love the energy the track has. The vocals are also well done, both from JP and the backing vocals. This is the sound that I keep hoping JP concentrate more on but that has not been the case, however I appreciate how JP always puts one or two tracks such as this one for us who love his traditional side, in his last album there was Tauchira & Hakata.

9. Munyaradzi

This is a powerful jam which many couples can relate to, starting a family when finances are not in order is a huge challenge. You do not know whether you gonna make it in the future or its gonna be like this forever, you will be each other’s comforter, you both need to be strong. On the story on the track, the partner could not handle the struggle and left, the guy went on to make it but the lady had already left. The production is done well, the vocals and instrumental arrangement are also good.

10. Kana Ndada (feat Zahara)

This track has been touted as the ultimate sing along track of the album and it fits the bill. It’s quite a nice jam. It’s about when one has fallen in love, the things they are willing to do. It filled with some cheesy lines but that what you expect from someone who is crazy in Love. The two artists complemented each other well, it’s not magical as I thought going into it but it’s not quite nice.

11. Nyaya DzeRerudo 

This track is as good as any afro beat hit you can find anywhere in Africa. The production is well done, the arrangement of the instrumental and vocals is all on point. As you expect from a future afro beat hit, its catchy enough to stick in your head, the vocal progression especially on the hook is easy and fun to sing along to.

  

12. Mukwasha

This track talks about the struggles of being a son in law, some families have crazy demands for their son in laws. It feels as if it’s a crime to be a son in law but regardless of all that JP is saying I will do all of it because your daughter is amazing. The track dropped with some superb visuals, JP does not sacrifice when it comes to visuals and these ones add to his growing list of good visuals. It’s a fun jam, which you can sing along to.

13. Tonight

This is that ultimate party jam on the album, I can easily picture this one filling up the dancefloor in clubs once the lockdown is lifted. If you just want to turn up this track is for you.  JP & Dj Tamuka have come together for some party jams in the past years and this track adds onto that list.

14. Kwayedza

Love the visuals of this track, JP is showcasing his culture and basking in its beauty. Love it when I see an artist celebrating our culture The track is also urging fellow Africans to celebrate our dark skin, our culture and tradition, I just love it. The production is done well, love the vocals.

15. Asante Sana

This was the first track released prior to the album. It’s his dedication to the haters, it seems every album must have such a track these days. The production is typical JP, its fast which fits his dances. I’m not a huge fan of this jam, despite the up tempo nature of the track it feels as if he just took a template from his many similar sounding tracks and decided to build a catchy chorus which tries to capitalize on the Asante Sana statement.

So that’s it for the track by track review. I have to say as a whole the project is quite good and have enjoyed listening to it. The album is a testament to the amazing team JP has behind him, they took a year off to craft a plan on how to keep JP at the top of the music and they have pulled it off. Unlike many projects where the music comes first then the strategy is created around the music on this album the strategy came first and the music followed guided by the strategy. Lemme explain more;

JP has been on top of the music game for years and when you are at the top being innovative can cost you big, trying a new sound may not go down with most fans and they will stop supporting you which in turn hurt your image and your bottom line as u may lose endorsements, so to safe keep the throne and  the endorsement money coming most just follow popular sounds and structures and deliver a sound that they already know the people love. That is one strategy which you can clearly pick on this album; JP found a version of his sound that people enjoy and for years (including on this project) he is just replicating that sound. That is why most tracks on this album sound familiar to each other and also familiar to many songs he has released in the past 4 or so years. Making songs that sound familiar means the tracks never feel boring mainly because they follow a sound people already love. JP also took advantage of the popular afro beat vibe with tracks such as Tonight and Nyaya Dzerudo, which sound similar to hundreds other afro beat tracks. The advantage JP has on his side is that his current sound is still good, meaning he will absolutely get away with, I however don’t know how much he can continue to milk this sound. The production is however done well throughout, the arrangements of the tracks are familiar for most tracks but they sound good, the arrangements of the vocals is also good but also familiar. So you can clearly see that JP and team executed their strategy very well.

The next strategy that JP and Team made is to make sure the album makes as much impact as quick as possible. For this they had to make use of words, phrases, titles, structures and visuals to ensure they get maximum reach, buzz and attention. The borrowing of a track from ZCC was clearly going to catch attention, the inclusion is Prophet Makandiwa name in a song was also made to create buzz and get attention, the title Asante Sana was definitely click bait, the inclusion of Julius Malema was a strategic move. He did not do it on all tracks but he used the strategy on a few tracks that are well placed within the album. To mask it all JP laced other tracks in his usual style, delivering some socially conscious jams (Chiramwiwa, Dzirere, Hokoyo, Munyaradzi, Kwayedza) to give the album a matured feel then quite a number of love jams, then obviously some party tracks. The release of visuals was the icing on the cake which ensured JP will be all people talk about in the coming weeks. Loved the visuals for Munyaradzi, Kwayedza.

To end this review I have to say was super impressed with the strategy put behind this album, I just had to integrate it into the review. The album is quite a good listen, have enjoyed it more than most of his past projects, my favourite is Wenge, it’s just a superb jam, it’s the traditional sound I hoped JP was going to put more effort on. Other tracks I loved were Kwayedza, Munyaradzi, Mukwasha, Mwana waMambo and Miteuro. My least favourite is Asante Sana but in overall there is no bad song, they all hover between the average to very good zone. Its arguably the best project released so far in 2020.

My overall rating 8/10.

Proud_Zimbo