The Sunday Mail
Liam Ndabambi and Zivanai Mudzimundiringe
We always wondered what he was like in person.
Could there be a difference between the person we see on television, particularly on the hit video “Strings and Bling”, and the real life character?
In the video, he is at a school interacting with his fans, all hyped up and full of energy. That was our expectation when we got the call to be interns for the media team that was covering Nasty C’s Ivyson Zim Schools Tour.
The Zimbabwe leg of the Ivyson Tour has seen Nasty C take a five-day trip to visit several schools in Zimbabwe with the intention of meeting the youth who identify with his music and lifestyle. Nasty C wants to encourage youths to follow their dreams and explore their artistic capabilities.
When we arrived at the Meikles Hotel, we got to meet “Wacko” hitmaker King 98 and “Kanjiva” singer Enzo Ishall. Our initial thoughts were that these cats are all about the clout, but then we found out that they are actually friendly people.
King 98 was the first to greet us. Shortly afterwards, Nasty Cs deejay, DJ Mark, appeared and his first words were, “Gents, what’s the plan?” Nasty C then emerged from behind him. He was one metre away from us but we were too star-struck to even attempt a greeting.
Heavily-built bouncers surrounded him. We wondered if we were going to be allowed to talk to the superstar. They passed us and walked to their waiting car. We also got into our own chauffeur-driven ride, a Chrysler 300C, the kind that top American celebrities like DJ Khaled also drive.
Opening the door, the scent just hit us. Leather does that. We kept checking out the centre console and all the gadgets. The blinky buttons and the awesome sound system.
Miss Tracy Ngoma from Impala was our chauffeur. She started playing King 98 and Nasty C’s track, “Wacko”. It was unbelievable that the guys on the stereo were in the car just behind us.
As we rocked up to the first school, Roosevelt Girls High, screams came from the school hall. We walked in front of Nasty C and took our positions on stage with our cameras.
Nasty C walked in. The screams from the girls got so loud and deafening. Our eyes were being blinded by the flashing lights of phone cameras.
The screams grew louder when he shouted, “I’m Nasty C!”
At that moment, we also forgot who we are. We were mini celebs sharing a stage with Nasty C. Our hearts were beating so fast. We could only imagine how Nasty C was feeling.
Later, as we stopped for lunch at Sam Levy’s Village, we just happened to be standing next to Nasty C’s car. We struck a conversation and he told us how much he loved Zimbabwe. It was such a normal conversation, it was like he was our homeboy. In that moment, he was just David not Nasty C the superstar.
“I use the Ivyson Tour to connect with my fans who really know my music. I get to perform songs from the album that I am most passionate about. I am very humbled by the love and appreciation from the schools I have been to. I am amazed at how fans here actually know my songs and can sing them word-for-word,” he said.
We visited more schools. The most memorable was St John’s Emerald Hill. They had a board written “Welcome Nasty C”. Some students had placards with different messages and they had their own media crew taking videos and pictures. The students made three war cries on the spot to welcome Nasty C.
Once in the school hall, the students were told to come closer to the stage. There was a stampede to get to the front row. It was insane. As he was performing, we could see some students crying, some girls even fainted. Leaving the school was hectic. It took us a while as the students had blocked the convoy’s way and continued screaming. At the gate, a student who had collected fan mail written to Nasty C handed it over to him, much to Nasty C’s delight.
As we were touring the schools, we got a chance to ride with Mr Thompson Dondo, the owner of Impala Car Rental. He did not treat us like interns, but more like his own children. He gave us advice: “It does not matter where you come from. What matters is where you want to get to. Never give up. And make sure your mind is always on the prize.”
We got to see the other side of celebrity life, the side that most people do not know about. We got to appreciate the benefits of working as a team. We learnt that we need to be more confident in who we are. We went in thinking that we were nobodies, only to be appreciated and treated like family by all the celebrities and the Impala Car Rental staff.
Lastly, King 98 told us that no matter how far up in life one goes, they should not forget the people who helped them get to that point.
On December 21, the last show of the 2019 Ivyson Tour, Nasty C will share the stage with King 98, Enzo Ishall, Kikky Badass and Takura, among many others. It is now certain it will be a full house.
We are grateful to Impala Car Rental and The Sunday Mail for letting us intern during Nasty C’s schools tour.
Liam Ndabambi is a 19-year-old Upper Six student at Gateway High School. Follow him on Instagram @_.lee.yam._
Zivanai Mudzimundiringe is a 20-year-old first year student at Midlands State University. Follow him on Instagram @_zi.vanai_09
Students send your articles, pictures, poetry or art to [email protected] or [email protected], WhatsApp or text Charles Mushinga on 0719936678. Follow Charles Mushinga on Facebook or @charlesmushinga on Twitter.
