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Entertainment Editor

Fans are still struggling to give seasoned Afro-contemporary musician Jah Prayzah a title to describe his just-ended double album launch.

Superstar, heroic or masterpiece, well the choice is yours.

Those who want it easy, have renamed him “The Undertaker”,to say he nailed it with his great performances during the launch. 

Friday May 12, 2023 — Jah Prayzah successfully launched his 12th album titled “Chiremerera”. And the venue, Old Hararians Sports Club, with its spacious open space, was packed to the maximum, whether at the VIP area or the general access. He recorded a feat.

Like the title, “Chiremerera” which speaks volumes as in “Heavyweight” or “Highly Respected”, Jah Prayzah proved to be in a league of his own.

The creativity and success of the 12-track album launch was a marvel— review of the music itself is a topic for another day.

Jah Prayzah can easily be crowned the “king of creativity”  — he has mastered the game and knew very well that he needed a bigger venue as he chose Old Hararians Sports Club for the launch of “Chiremerera”.

With the fully packed venue and the aesthetics accompanying the show, he set the standards of hosting shows very high.

There were three sections — general, VIP and VVIP — which were clearly subdivided, but everyone was having an equal share of the cake.

As for the stage, Jah Prayzah showed that Zimbabwean artistes can now compete well in hosting shows with international standards.

What Jah Prayzah and his team displayed, courtesy of Events Evolution, a company that specialises in stage set-up and other related issues for hosting a show, was amazing.

There was no technical fault from sound to lightning, as everything went according to script.

Kudos for that.

The show saw other musicians such as Feli Nandi, Baba Harare, Mookomba, Dj Iroq and Abisha Palmer, performing.

Feli Nandi performing on stage at Jah Prayzah’s album launch

What made the launch unique was that Jah Prayzah chose his mother as the guest of honour on the eve of Mother’s Day.

Clad in white African attire with matching hat and neckpiece, Jah Prayzah started the show seated on what appeared like a throne, a move which drove the fans into a frenzy.

His band chose nude, brown and tan attire suitable for such an environment.

The act was opened by a poet Nobert Mafumhe Mutasa, typical of the African traditional culture where one gets to be celebrated for achieving good, or as a sign to appease the spirit mediums. 

Jah Prayzah surprised his fans as he gave an electrifying performance with Team Rwanda and Team Botswana.

By engaging artistes from Rwanda and Botswana, Jah Prayzah played his cards right in terms of regional reach.

Revellers at Jah Prayzah’s album launch

He marketed the album well and it will be easier for him to penetrate those countries, and even aim for regional awards.

The Friday album launch was more traditional and he confirmed that it was different from the usual tempo his fans are used to.

He performed songs from the new album such as “Chiremerera”, “Sarungano” and “Wanga Wakarara”.

There was mixed feelings from the fans.

Some said he chose a wrong playlist as the show was more traditional, while others praised the musician for the good work in tracing his roots, going back to the drawing board where started music wise.

But the show went according to script.

To cater for his fans who are used to his fast music, Jah Prayzah churned out yesteryear hits such as “Dangerous”, “Jerusarema”, “Nyeredzi” and “Goto”.