Mdhara Vachauya won't last the distance

Today marks a month since the release of Jah Prayzah's "Mdhara Vachauya" and the album might have attracted immediate attention due to loads of anticipation that awaited its arrival, but the excitement will fade away with time because the product does not have the staying power that has sustained his previous releases. Most tracks on "Mdhara Vachauya" are club bangers and will definitely shake the showbiz scene, but will certainly not stand the test of time.

Club bangers never last long.

Winky D's "Disappear" is an immediate example.

It rocked the entertainment industry during the festive season and disappeared from playlists after a few months.

On "Mudhara Vachauya", Jah Prayzah went on an overdrive with a massive diversion from his traditional beat in a move that he says was aimed at penetrating the international market and the results may not come as he expected because his local fans are used to music with depth.

The musician was probably carried away by the success of his song "Hello", which had instant interest that was spurred by an exceptional video since it came as a bonus track on "Jerusarema" DVD.

The "Hello" style dominates on "Mdhara Vachauya", but Jah Prayzah should not have made a huge leap into that territory. Balancing his album between the new style and his traditional beat would have been advisable. Of course, Jah Prayzah's strength is in doing exceptional videos, which is why the track "Watora Mari" has been outstanding with a first-class video.

Bringing in Tanzania's Diamond Platinumz on "Watora Mari" is a tactic that Jah Prayzah has employed in previous albums when he experiments with foreign musicians. He did it with Botswana's Charma Girl on the song "Dali Wami" off "Kumbumura Mhute" and Jamaica's reggae legend Luciano on "Roots" from "Jerusarema".

As an apparent follow up to "Roots", Jah Prayzah spiced "Mudhara Vachauya" with a reggae track "In the Ghetto" that can be as a bonus track just as the musician did with the Luciano collaboration. While it is an important way of trying to reach out to audiences in other countries and networking with foreign artistes, the trick has not yet brought commendable results for Jah Prayzah.

Jah Prayzah apparently underestimated the power of his mbira vibes and opted for a different sound. Yes, the album is currently a hit and most of the songs are dominating individual and public playlists, but they will not maintain the strong momentum set by "Tsviriyo" and "Jerusarema".

While previous albums appealed to fans across ages, "Mudhara Vachauya" has not been able to entice mature listeners that are beyond the age of club beats. Save for songs like "Seke" and "Goto" that have a strong traditional feel that has characterised Jah Prayzah's music over the past years, other songs do not have the staying power.

Indeed these two songs raise the tempo of the album and they will definitely be future references for "Mudhara Vachauya". They represent the real Jah Prayzah feel. The musicians will have to release more videos soon to push the album's popularity further.

That "Watora Mari" video has exceeded a million views is testimony to Jah Prayzah's prowess with videos. He has exhibited the prowess with his previous videos that will be exciting for many years to come.

But "Watora Mari" would not have made so much impact without a video and it falls in the bracket of club bangers that make up a greater part of "Mudhara Vachauya". It is not a song that will appeal to the musician's mature fans that still marvel at old songs like "Maria", "Jerusarema", "Tiise Maoko" and "Ndoenda".

The song "Hossana" has deep lyrics and a sober beat, but it lacks the traditional appeal that could have made it a great track.

It was evident in the early days of live shows after the release of the album that his instrumentalists were struggling to match electric beats of some of the songs and that could be the reason why he could not impress audiences at the recent Mafikizolo show.

An earlier show had suffered a similar fate at Extra Mile Lesure Spot. It is good for musicians to experiment with new beats and attempt to go for the international market but Jah Prayzah seems to have taken the trial too far.

Local musicians that have made it internationally kept their original beats and the likes of Oliver Mtukudzi, Chiwoniso Maraire and Thomas Mapfumo are good examples. As their beats penetrated the international market, they kept serving their local audiences with their original rhythms.