Former Miss Zimbabwe ventures into music

SHE claimed her fair share of fame when she was crowned Miss Zimbabwe in 2008 but the end of her term as the country's beauty queen did not end her fame as modelling was not the only thing she was good at.

She has managed to with so much ease venture into other artistic avenues and her name still tops the list in the entertainment industry.

Vanessa Sibanda, who is popularly known by her fans as Queen Vee, is following in the footsteps of some of the country's artistes based in South Africa such as Buffalo Souljah in raising the Zimbabwean artistic banner.

The model-cum-artiste is set to release a new single that she did with Ziyon from Liquideep this month. Queen Vee said she was working with a lot of artistes in South Africa for her upcoming album to be released this year.

"I have released a single called Agenda featuring SA Rapper L-Tido and AB Crazy which was produced by a talented Zimbabwean producer called Thaiwanda. It's a banger and is being played on many Zimbabwean radio stations as well as South African stations. I feel blessed to be working with such talented artistes," she said.

The former model said she appreciated the love and support she was getting from her fans. As a token of appreciation, she is running a competition for her fans that would see the winner walking away with $1 000 in cash.

"I am running a competition for my fans, all they have to do is to upload a video of themselves on Instagram, twitter or facebook then tag me. They can dance or sing to my new single Agenda. Whoever has the best video will stand a chance to win $1 000 cash," she said.

Queen Vee said 2015 was going to be a great year for her as she has planned for bigger things. She said people were going to see a different Vanessa from last year as she intended to take her music to greater heights.

"This year people will experience a different Vanessa, I have reinvented myself and my music. I also promise my fans who I view as my friends, the highest quality in my performances, videos and music. My plan is to take my music and the Queen Vee brand to greater heights," she said.

One of her dreams is to be recognised internationally for her great music as well as clothing label that she is working on. Not only does she want her music to be recognised internationally but her designs which are on hold till she finishes her album.

"God willing, my name will be appearing among some international stars in the music and fashion world. There are a couple of designs under Queen Vee Couture that I have done and also wear for my performances and in my videos. I also design when I am not recording in the studio but will only launch the clothing line after my music album is out," said Queen Vee.

Queen Vee said she would be working with local artistes as part of her 2015 programme. She said she had already booked studio dates with artistes that are very popular. She, however, declined to mention their names insisting that she wanted the collaborations to be a surprise.

Besides being a singer and designer, Queen Vee is a mother and a wife. She said being a mother and a wife was not an easy job but she always makes time for her family.

"I can say I am coping well as a mother and a wife but it's one of the hardest things to do. My son is a globetrotter because he has been in every country that I visit when I am working," she said.