The Sunday Mail
Many artistes do not have access to the country’s largest stages and Unplugged is an ideal place for budding and established jazz, blues, folk, mbira and urban artistes to develop or grow their fan base.
There is a new upmarket music and lifestyle event in town: Unplugged in Harare.
The wine and music monthly event, which brings together tourists and locals, encourages audiences to drive down to Glen Lorne with a blanket or picnic chair, a bottle of wine, and friends and family to share in a music and lifestyle experience.
The brains behind the event, Ellinah Mtandwa and Chiedza Danha, are long-time friends who came together on the project as a result of their passion for music and the arts and the desire to promote local talent.
They say they identified a clear gap in the market as far as consumption of good quality Afro-centric music by Harare’s high society is concerned.
At Unplugged, artistes get a platform to share their talent in a supportive environment amongst people who share their love for music.
Many artistes do not have access to the country’s largest stages and Unplugged is an ideal place for budding and established jazz, blues, folk, mbira and urban artistes to develop or grow their fan base.
Danha notes: “It is quite clear to us that there is a demand to see local talent on the up-market side of town, but there aren’t very many venues, or very many people keen on investing in making that happen.
“We are building a lifestyle for Harare’s glitterati around music, around the urbane, where local or African is ‘cool’.”
As its tagline “Love.Live.Music” suggests, Unplugged is designed to showcase various genres of Afro-centric music, while encouraging local audiences to promote upcoming and undiscovered talent.
Unplugged comes every monthend and draws crowds of up to 300 people of all races and ages.
A major draw is the that people can bring their own food and drinks, although a variety of vendors are also present.
Though styled around a blanket and wine theme, the event offers lots of activities for children, too, including face painting, a jumping castle and clowns.
Mtandwa and Danah say the dearth in family-friendly spaces and events was a key driver in their thinking around this outing.
“The Unplugged proposition is simple; it is a music and lifestyle event, but it is child friendly.
So often you hear people say, there are so few things I can do with my kids, or my family.
“A lot of entertainment is centred around bars or pubs, which is fine in itself, but families need positive, hip, culturally diverse and child-friendly places to go and have fun too,” says Mtandwa.
So what makes Unplugged different from other music shows?
“For starters, our acts are always awesome.
“In the past we have had Edith WeUtonga, Daniel Jenkins, Richie Orange, Shingi Mangoma, Djembe Monks, Tariro Negitare and Macy and The Red.
People are also always pleasantly surprised to see such a huge and impressive platform, especially the artistes,” Mtandwa explains.
Danha chips in: “We are also all about switching it up, transforming with each edition. Two months ago we held a Barnyard-themed event which threw people off, but everybody loved it.”
With the right kind of support, the two see this becoming the calendar event in Harare and a recognised lifestyle brand.
At the moment they are looking for sponsors, particularly brands that match their aspirational outlook.
Unplugged regular Felly Chikadaya says: “It is not just about the music. It is about the lifestyle.
“You see it in the way people dress, how they interact, it’s not about being shy it is just about positive vibes. Like a big Afro-hippie fest.”
