“I am happy with the chance I have been given and it is my first time to sing outside Zimbabwe. My music has been received within Zimbabwe and I hope those in the Diaspora will receive my music very well.”
The above quote came from high flying musician Jah Prayzah back in 2012 when he got his first shot at spreading his music to an international audience as he embarked on his maiden UK tour. Who would have thought that four years later The Third Generation band frontman would be a contender for the Listener’s Choice Award at the prestigious MTV Africa Music Awards and then walk away with the gong?
Winning the MTV award is a milestone representing Jah Prayzah’s expanding fan base given that music fans across Africa voted for him ahead of other popular acts like Bebe Cool, Burna Boy, Prince Kaybee and EL. Having conquered the local music scene on radio, television and the stage by a long stretch, the talented artiste finally got his big break on the international arena after collaborating with Tanzanian superstar, Diamond Platinumz, on the song “Watora Mari”. The video became an instant hit on release in August, clocking one million views on YouTube in just 18 days and dominating many international music video channels.
While recognition as a continental fan favourite might be a feat on its own, the man from Uzumba believes this is just the beginning as he intends to expand his influence beyond Africa. In an interview with The Sunday Mail Leisure last week, Jah Prayzah said he was lining up more collaborations with international heavyweights. “Right now I need more collaborations and videos with top acts from around the globe in order to spread my brand further. “Our target is to get even more recognition from the likes of BET Awards and the Grammy Awards, but if we don’t dream it we can never achieve it,” said Jah Prayzah. “I am trying to avoid a situation where we just make one international hit and we end there.”
Jah Prayzah would not divulge the names of the artistes he is targeting for collaborations but promised fans would be dancing to one of these songs before the end of 2016. “We are talking to several top acts from across the continent and while I cannot disclose the names at the moment all I can say is that something big is cooking and fans should brace for more exciting international hits. “We want to try and maintain the quality we have achieved with videos for ‘Watora Mari’ and ‘Mdhara Vachauya’. The money we have to invest to achieve that is a bit steep so we might end up just making a few videos.
” Jah Prayzah has one of the biggest catalogues of collaborations in the country having worked with almost every top local act including Oliver Mtukudzi, the late Chiwoniso Maraire, Fungisai ZvakavapanoMashavave and Suluman Chimbetu. He has also collaborated with other international acts such as Jamaican reggae icon Luciano and Botswana’s Chama Girl. Although his previous collaborations failed to make a significant impact internationally, Jah Prayzah believes that they contributed a lot to his growth. “I can’t dispute that my collaboration with Diamond Platinumz is the biggest yet, but I believe all the other collaborations I have done in the past contributed to getting me where I am today. For example, when I collaborated with Chama Girl, our fan base in Botswana started growing and there is a probability that there are some people in Jamaica who have also listened to my song with Luciano.”
The artiste is working on a project with platinumselling British pop group Sam and the Womp. This could be another opportunity for Jah Prayzah to spread his wings further considering that Sam and the Womp has already tasted the UK Singles Chart number one spot with their 2012 debut single “Bom Bom”. “We are working on a huge project with a British pop group, Sam and the Womp, which is nearing completion. This is going to be new territory for us considering that we tried to fuse pop music with our own sound but I am sure when it comes out, people will like it.” Commenting on his recent award, Jah Prayzah said this has been his dream for a long time to be recognised at such a big stage. “It has been a couple of days since I won the award but it’s still difficult for me to accept the fact that I actually have an MTV award, right here, in my office. “This has been my wish for a long time, to be recognised out there because on the local front I think we have managed to win almost every award and we have achieved so much here so being recognised internationally is a very big achievement for us.” He went on:
“I want to give credit to Diamond Platinumz because I realised that the song and video we did together pushed my brand big time because Diamond is well known across the continent so some of his followers also started following me. Even when it came to voting, some of the people who voted for me were his fans.” Meanwhile, Diamond Platinumz will share the stage with the MTV awardwinner on December 2 at the Harare International Conference Centre at a concert dubbed “Watora Mari”