tangerine dramatize: Local is 'laka' but?

Friday, August 3, 2012

Local is 'laka' but? | Zambia Daily Mail

ZULU.

Art Yak with CHANDA MWENYA
I SUPPOSE you have heard someone say ?Local is laka?. But incase you did not comprehend the laka part of the phrase ? It is a street jargon for good. So the English would simply say ?Local is good?. This catch phrase is cooked-up to promote local products but is somewhat synonymous to supporting Zambian music.
Admittedly some local music is laka ? in fact very laka, but some is totally misguided if you ask me.
I am inclined to write about the local music following the continued concerns from the Zambian musicians, who have repeatedly expressed their discontent over the use of foreign artists at local ventures.
Perhaps, the loudest cry came last year in the wake of the Zambia National Tourist Board?s (ZNTB) invitation of Congolese rhumba maestro Fally Ipupa for its re-branding promotion scheme.
When ZNTB was questioned why it invited a foreign artist to promote a ?Truly Zambian? product, we learnt? that ZNTB as a member of the World Tourism Organisation, was at? liberty to work with any artist from other member states.
Ironically, the Show Society of Zambia has also invited the same artist as the main attraction at the music arena at the on-going Lusaka Agriculture and Commercial premier, which opened doors to the public yesterday. The development has once again provoked hullabaloo from the local artists.
Meanwhile, the Zambia Union of Musician (MUZ) president and a versatile reggae artist himself, Maiko Zulu said the complaints by the local artists are justifiable.
He explained in an interview with this writer, that some local music promoters are perpetrators of the regrettable trend.
Maiko immediately bemoaned the unfair remuneration package between the foreign and local artists in these deals, saying the foreign artists are paid exorbitantly while the locals get peanuts. That is not laka, I thought.
He also talked about the unfair promotion. ?Just see how they are promoting Fally on those posters, radio and television adverts. They say he is performing alongside other Zambian Artists. It?s totally unfair,? he lamented.
However, Maiko appreciated the opportunity for local artists to share the work experience with their foreign counterparts at these forums and quickly called upon the National Arts Council (NAC) to assist in setting standards that can assist in improving the local music industry.
Maiko bemoaned the lack of understanding of music by some radio disc jockeys, who he said do not distinguish what is club music and end up playing lyrics with vulgar content on air.
At least with this background and going by the quality of music blazing the airwaves, I am inclined to believe that most Zambian artists are specialising in music, which is ideal for clubhouse with little constructive lyrics to write home about.
Who remembers the days of Teal Records, when people rushed to the record stores to grab a latest release of the local artists ? the likes of the Smoky Hangala, Laban Kalunga, Paul Ngozi, John Mwansa and Anna Mwales?s of this world?
Who remembers the glory years of general service and Radio Mulungushi, when people glued to their ITT supersonic two-band radios?
Well, let?s not dwell on the past glory. There are a lot of cotemporary artists composing music, which is not only entertaining but informative and educative. What is annoying is the music of misguided youths masquerading as up-and-coming artists from underground music studios, whose vulgar lyrics hit the airwaves with impunity.
But one would again argue that radio stations are at liberty to play what they believed is laka.
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