The Sunday Mail
Zion Divaris
WHAT kicked off at The River Club, Cape Town, South Africa on September 20 will come to a close on December 21 at Pabloz VIP car park in Harare.
Since the first gig of Ivyson, Nasty C and his crew of rap gods that include Zimbabwean youngster King 98, have been to the Constitutional Hill in Johannesburg and Emerald Casino, Vaal.
They also sold out concerts and left the crowds begging for more in Durban and Bloemfontein, with a Pretoria gig having been pencilled for last night at the 012 Central.
The team will take a short break to recharge their batteries before unleashing all their energy on a hard-to-please Harare crowd on December 21.
The show is headlined by big names in the business — Nasty C himself, Gemini Major and Tellerman — who are making their first stops in Harare. Then, there is Rowlene the goddess and Zimbabwe’s very own King 98, who has released a string of hits over the past 12 months.
To add a Zim hip-hop feel to the gig — Stunner, Takura, Shashl, Union 5, DJ Silence Dosh and T Gonz have been added to the line-up.
The event has already created a massive hype two months before it takes place, a sign that it is likely going to be oversubscribed.
Speaking just before going into rehearsals for Friday’s show, King 98 said the Ivyson Tour has opened his eyes.
“The tour has exposed me to a lot of stuff. It has helped me get a new fan base. Now, a lot of people support my music. By next year, I think I will be gigging all over South Africa because I have been to a lot of places with this tour.
“The response in Bloemfontein, Vaal, Durban, Cape Town and Johannesburg was amazing. People actually like my music and they connect with it when I’m on stage — it’s pretty cool. The South African crowd is really warm, they give you time, they appreciate what you do and I am enjoying myself,” said King 98.
The 21-year-old Pretoria University student said the feedback, both favourable and foul, has helped him locate himself within the grand scheme of the hip-hop world.
“I have learnt a lot from criticism and hate as much as I have from good feedback and love. I have come to understand that the world is big enough for the good and the not-so-good. My heart is big enough to deal with people that value me and those that do not.”
King 98 intends to drop a video for his hit single “Shoko”, which features ExQ.
“My fans should expect the ‘Shoko’ video. It should drop in the first week of November,” he said.
The Ivyson tour was founded in Cape Town in 2017. The Mother City was the home town for Nasty C’s mother, which is why he thought it would be an ideal place for the launch of his personalised tour.
His mother’s name was Ivy, thus he named his tour Ivyson (Ivy’s son) in her honour.
In Zimbabwe, Nasty C is expected to sample some songs from his yet to be released album with the working title “Zulu Man With Some Power”.
