ARTS: Jah Prayzah like you have never seen before

09 Nov, 2014 - 06:11 0 Views
ARTS: Jah Prayzah like you have never seen before Jah features as a soldier in ‘Soja Rinosvika Kure’

The Sunday Mail

Jah Prayzah

Jah Prayzah

Mukudzeyi Mukombe, known affectionately by his legion of fans as Jah Prayzah, will tomorrow release a DVD album for his last offering “Kumbumura Mhute”.

Early this year, Jah Prayzah’s video “Mwanasikana” from the album “Tsviriyo” scooped Best Video for 2013 at the National Merit Awards (Nama) to add to his numerous previous awards. Now, going through the six-track video album, one is left with no doubt that the lanky musician is yet to reach his zenith inasfar as ingenuity is concerned. The new video compilation, by far surpasses standards set on “Tsviriyo”.

The well-thought-out script and scene selection on the project can literally turn Nollywood, Bollywood and even Hollywood producers green with envy.

While others feel that in some instances his beat sounds like revised versions of his previous productions, the same cannot be said about his videos. On the video for “Soja Rinosvika Kure”, Jah Prayzah, who is Zimbabwe Defence Forces (ZDF) Culture Ambassador, received full support from the army who provided helicopters, troops and shooting grounds. In fact, on the song he does not use his Third Generation Band, instead, soldiers were his backing vocalists and extras. The drills are so real and depict the actual armed forces’ day-to-day experiences.

Isaiah Kadifura stars as Makanika in  Jah Prayzah’s forthcoming DVD album.

Isaiah Kadifura stars as Makanika in Jah Prayzah’s forthcoming DVD album.

A well-known Guruve character, Isaiah Kadifura, features on the video for the track “Makanika”. The charismatic character unleashes all sorts of theatrics that leaves one wishing for more. The disenchanted girl who battles to come to terms with the reality that she is in love with a charlatan adds flair to the video. “Dali Wangu”, which features Botswana’s Charma Gal, portrays the father’s unconditional disapproval of the relationship between her daughter and boyfriend (Jah Prayzah),

“My weakness is perfection. I have made sure that videos on this album will provide value for money to my fans and any other person that purchases it,” declared Jah Prayzah.

Of the six videos on the DVD, only four songs — “Dali Wangu”, “Kumbumura Mhute”, “Makanika” and “Soldier Rinosvika Kure” — are from his album “Kumbumura Mhute”.

The other two songs, the opening track “Moyo Wakaoma” and “Kure Kure” featuring Ammara Brown, are singles known only to fans that frequent his shows. The new track “Moyo Wakaoma” features actress and dancer Dalma Chiwereva. The song was recorded a couple of months ago based on a real-life experience about a mother dumping her baby. Jah Prayzah argues that he is constantly producing music and had in the past months came up with a new production that he feels would add value to the DVD album.

Jah features as a soldier in ‘Soja Rinosvika Kure’

Jah features as a soldier in ‘Soja Rinosvika Kure’

“I had an option to release Moyo Wakaoma as a single, but I put the idea on hold. I’m now officially unveiling the single which was not on the market through this DVD album together with another single I did with Ammara Brown,” he adds. Industry watchers are of the view that the musician had to drop from the 10 tracks on his album to six tracks as he lacked confidence on the impact the videos would have on the market. However, the energetic musician has a different view. He says that he has a “standing policy” that limits him to the production of only six videos for each of his video album productions. This, he said, is the reason why he also did not shoot videos to every song on the multi-award-winning album “Tsviriyo”. “Ten videos are just too much. I have a policy of producing only six videos. As musicians we should never sacrifice quality for quantity. It would not make sense for me to record 10 sub-standard videos. The little funds we get should be put to effective use through perfect projects,” he said.

Director of Jive Zimbabwe, Benjamin Nyandoro, who is responsible for the marketing and distribution of the DVD album, said they had engaged relevant partners to ensure smooth distribution of the product.

“The DVD will be available through official channels in every corner of the country. We are working in partnership with a number of organisations and anticipate a smooth flow with regards to sales.

“Enough copies will be availed on Monday (tomorrow),” he said.

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