The Sunday Mail
THE entertainment scene is abuzz with Tytan and Ammara Brown’s collaboration “Mukoko”, and with good cause too.
The “Mukoko” video is a hit on YouTube and the song is making waves on social media platforms and radio stations.
Ammara’s abilities as a vocalist and performer are undeniable, but besides her collaboration with Jah Prayzah on “Kure” last year, she has struggled until the purple patch brought by “Mukoko”.
The vivacious artiste puts on a memorable act on the video, resulting in her stealing the spotlight from the composer of the song, Tytan, real name Njabulo Nkomo.
Until the release of “Mukoko”, Tytan was known only as the force behind award-winning singer Cynthia Mare’s career.
Riding high on the crest of the single, Tytan is working on a follow-up project, which he intends to release before the end of April.
The Sunday Mail Leisure had a chat with Tytan and he shared his journey from being a bank worker to being a star in the making.
“I was born on February 6, 1990 in Harare and I grew up in Waterfalls, which is where I also did my primary school at Hermann Gmeiner. I went on to do my O-Level studies at Nyanga High School before moving to Kutama College for A-Level, finishing in 2008,” narrated Tytan. “I have an older sister who is now married, and in our family I am the first to develop a passion for music.”
It was in high school that he fell in love with music and he would perform at talent shows and other such events. After high school, the young man tried to venture into the music industry, recording several singles that failed to get airplay leading him to quit and follow a different path.
“When I finished high school, I started doing music but when that failed to take off I just decided to go back to school and that is when I started studying information and technology at a college in town. While I was still in college I was also working as a restaurant manager at Vero’s Kitchen in Borrowdale. That was around 2010, 2011.
“When I left the restaurant gig I started working at ZB Bank as a messenger at first and two months down the line, I applied from within and managed to get a job in their IT department.
“I was then moved to the help desk. At that time I had started working with Cynthia Mare when she came back to Zimbabwe, helping her find her footing in music.”
In 2014, Tytan decided to pursue another career path and quit his job to venture into brand management.
“When Cynthia launched her album ‘Songs My Mother Loved’ when she came back in 2013 I was not yet her manager and was actually looking for someone to manage her. I after a lengthy unsuccessful search, I then decided to manage her myself so I had to quit my job to venture into full time management.”
Tytan has proven to be a competent manager, steering Cynthia’s brand to the point where she has scooped several music awards and is becoming a household name.
He has also managed other artistes, including Soul Afrika and Donald Kanyuchi.
“Soul Afrika used to be based in Gweru so I took them in and they were staying with me when they moved to Harare. I encouraged them to switch from singing R&B to Afro-fusion and I was the executive producer for one of their first hit singles ‘Seiko Uchida Zvinhu’, but we went our separate ways when they signed with Kenako Music.” Last year, Tytan decided to give it another shot as a musician and started recording singles.
“In 2015 I decided to work on my brand as an artiste and released my first single ‘Faka Itshukela’, in February. Although, I had stopped doing music earlier on, I still had the passion because I believe that first and foremost I am a musician.”
He recorded “Kana Waropafadzwa” with Clive “Mono” Mukundu in August of that year.
As a rapper, Tytan prefers fusing his hip-hop lyrics with Afro beats, which has proven to be a magic formula considering the success of “Mukoko”.
Back in 2014, that song was just a work in progress and he did not plan on featuring anyone on it.
“I started working on ‘Mukoko’ at the end of 2014 and I wanted to make a song that could represent my brand, which is why I did not want to rush it. I then decided to add a female vocalist and that is when I engaged Ammara because I knew she was the perfect person for that particular role.
“Ammara is a great vocalist and performer who needs the right songs while on the other hand, I am a good lyricist so when you put the two together you get a song like ‘Mukoko’.
“I don’t have any problem with who gets the spotlight on this project because I am also feeding off the mileage that she had already.”
Being the new kid on the block, Tytan said he would make the best out of the hype he is currently enjoying.
“I have been working behind the scenes and popularity wise, I am new so if I don’t make the best out of the hype that’s there now I will go nowhere. I will continue working hard to grow my brand because when you release a song like this people expect a follow up so I am already working on another single which will be released at the end of the month.”
Tytan has been enjoying the many benefits that come with stardom and this has changed his life significantly.
“People have become more supportive and more people now recognise me in public. My brand value has increased, which has led to many opportunities opening up and recently I was featured in a G-tel advert.”
There is no special lady in his life right now, and those with ideas will have to wait a while longer.
“I am still single in every essence of the word – but I’m not searching.”
