Legendary Afro Jazz singer Jeys Marabini and crooner Willis Wataffi will this weekend headline a star studded concert in Bulawayo to Mark Africa Day.
The Bulawayo World Music Concert will take place at the Bulawayo Theatre on Saturday, May 24, 2014, the day before Africa Day.
Concert Organiser, Butshilo Nleya told Zimbo Jam that everything was on course for the gig and that he hoped it would be a platform for bringing Bulawayo together; “We believe that there is a disconnect between the different tribes and cultures that are in Bulawayo and through the Africa Day Concert, we intend to get the discussion going and create platforms of interaction,” he said.
A special feature of the concert will be the collaborations between established artists and newer acts. Collaborations will include Jeys Marabini with XMile, Bozoe with The Outfit and Willis Wataffi with Djembe Monks.
Singing sensation Eve Kawadza, fresh from a successful performance at HIFA, will also perform. Other acts on the programme include Alaina, Luke De Luks, Thandy Dlana and a fired up drumming quartet led by Erustus Nleya and Obey Mudiwa.
The concert, in line with the aim of bringing people together, will be themed, ‘Relinking communities through Culture’ and is part of a bigger programme which includes a book launch on May 21 by Richard Mahomva, a poetry show and slam on May 23 and the Bulawayo Night Of 1000 Laughs scheduled for May 30.
The Bulawayo World Music and Dance concert is produced with assistance and support from Pamberi Trust, Africalia, E.U, National Arts Council, Sound Kalcha, Mkhaya Music and KoMaseko Art and Ceramics and Aquastone events.
Pamberi Trust founder, Paul Brickhill spoke about the importance of building and reinforcing cultural structures outside Harare. “Arts output nationally has become heavily concentrated in Harare, where so many artists have migrated, and yet the roots of many of Zimbabwe’s great musical innovations originated outside Harare; mbira, mbube, chimurenga styles and others have their roots in diverse rural cultures, sometimes far from the cities. A kind of cultural fragmentation has occurred, and there is a need to rebuild cultural assets outside Harare where there are such rich and vital intangible cultural assets,” he said.