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Ammara Brown

Leroy Dzenga: Arts Correspondent

Pitched against acts of high repute, the stakes were high for local hip hop artistes to justify their inclusion on the roster at the just ended Shoko Festival. Prior to the event, very few gave local rappers a chance considering that the genre does not command the same following with the likes of Jah Prayzah and Winky D whom they were sharing the platform with.On the first day Simba Tagz and Tehn Diamond wowed the crowd with a polished performance which had some suggesting that the duo should release a joint album. Belting songs like “Give Thanks” and “Bhoo Tsano” which they did together, the pair had the crowd on their feet throughout their performance. With Tehn Diamond working towards releasing his debut album titled “A Few Good Poems” in October the performance was a good statement of intent.

Chitungwiza’s Sharky performed on the second day, sharing the stage with Ammara Brown and Jah Prayzah. The 23-year-old rapper proved why he is touted by many as the future of the genre within our borders.

His set was creatively executed with unmistakable ethnic elements which accompanied his performance.

Songs from his recently released debut album made up most of his set and tracks “Rusununguko”, “Freedom” and “Dzoka”, which he did with South Africa-based vocalist Crimson Blu, were popular with the crowd.

Despite the pressure which comes with performing just before an act of Jah Prayzah’s caliber, Sharky exonerated the organisers for placing him on such a prolific line-up.

On the last day at the “Peace In The Hood” concert in Chitungwiza, which was dominated by local rappers, T Gonzi tore the stage apart in front of perhaps the biggest crowd hip hop has managed to gather locally in recent years. Belting out songs from his new album, he showed why he has appeared on a number of feature songs in recent times.

Hip-hop managed to outperform the main act of the day the “Mudendere” hitmaker, Dobba Don. Dadza D’s guest performance at the Chitungwiza Festival also propped up the show as fans received more than they had been promised.

In a dancehall area like Chitungwiza, the rappers showed that given an equal platform their genre is as good as Zimdancehall.

Considered a peripheral genre over the years, now could be the time that local promoters need to start including them on serious events and rosters because rappers seem to have gotten their act together.