Entertainment / Music
Grace Mugabe tells police to arrest music pirates
23 Jun 2017 at 12:26hrs | Views
First Lady Grace Mugabe has called on law enforcement agents to descend heavily on pirates of music CDs who she accused of stifling growth of artistes and fuelling massive job losses in the country's entertainment industry.
Grace said this while addressing mourners at the late Dickson "Cde Chinx" Chingaira's home in Harare on Tuesday.
The issue of piracy has been an emotive one among local artistes for decades. The gravity of the issue forced dendera star Suluman Chimbetu to compose a titled Sean Timba which is popularly known by music fans as Batai Munhu.
In attempt to outfox music pirates, Last year sungura star Alick Macheso sold his 10th and latest album Tsoka Dzerwendo for just a dollar at Red Cross and Nash Paints offices countrywide.
The first lady said the late musician was an example of an artiste who had failed to reap the full rewards of his talent due to piracy.
"That's why I am pained when there are those people who are reproducing music, someone's work that you did not work for.
"To sing is not easy; you have to think very deep…asi nyope dzonotora dzoita piracy ma CD aye mukoma Chinx hapana chavanowana. Law enforcement agencies should descend heavily on those people," Grace said.
She added that piracy was discouraging artistes from creating more music.
"There are a lot of our musicians who are falling victim to piracy. The other day I saw the young man of Africa Revenge (Willis Wataffi).
"I don't see him these days; it's not that he does not want to sing, he wants to sing. Everyday young talented singers are working to try and eke a living but pane nyanya who reproduces other people's works.
"My professor during my PhD research would tell me ‘do you know there are some people vanodya zvevapfupi nekureba (people who take advantage of their situation to unfairly reap what they have not sown)," the first lady said.
She also paid tribute to Zimbabwe Music Awards (Zima) chairperson Joseph Nyadzayo for mobilising resources to build a home for the late former leader of the Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army choir (Zanla) Choir.
Cde Chinx was given keys to the house in 2014 as part of the Life Achievement Award they conferred on him then but the building of the house was only completed recently.
"We are in mourning but at the same time we are mourning Cde Chinx at a place that is worthy of a liberation war icon," Grace said.
Grace, who claims to be a fitness fanatic, recently said that she spends hours on the treadmill while listening to local music including Cde Chinx's popular song Hondo Yeminda.
"I support local content, only local content. In the gym, I alternate, I go onto the machine, I go onto the dance floor. Hondo Yeminda is my best song, it is number one," Grace said during the handover of the house to Cde Chinx by Zima.
Grace said this while addressing mourners at the late Dickson "Cde Chinx" Chingaira's home in Harare on Tuesday.
The issue of piracy has been an emotive one among local artistes for decades. The gravity of the issue forced dendera star Suluman Chimbetu to compose a titled Sean Timba which is popularly known by music fans as Batai Munhu.
In attempt to outfox music pirates, Last year sungura star Alick Macheso sold his 10th and latest album Tsoka Dzerwendo for just a dollar at Red Cross and Nash Paints offices countrywide.
The first lady said the late musician was an example of an artiste who had failed to reap the full rewards of his talent due to piracy.
"That's why I am pained when there are those people who are reproducing music, someone's work that you did not work for.
"To sing is not easy; you have to think very deep…asi nyope dzonotora dzoita piracy ma CD aye mukoma Chinx hapana chavanowana. Law enforcement agencies should descend heavily on those people," Grace said.
She added that piracy was discouraging artistes from creating more music.
"There are a lot of our musicians who are falling victim to piracy. The other day I saw the young man of Africa Revenge (Willis Wataffi).
"I don't see him these days; it's not that he does not want to sing, he wants to sing. Everyday young talented singers are working to try and eke a living but pane nyanya who reproduces other people's works.
"My professor during my PhD research would tell me ‘do you know there are some people vanodya zvevapfupi nekureba (people who take advantage of their situation to unfairly reap what they have not sown)," the first lady said.
She also paid tribute to Zimbabwe Music Awards (Zima) chairperson Joseph Nyadzayo for mobilising resources to build a home for the late former leader of the Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army choir (Zanla) Choir.
Cde Chinx was given keys to the house in 2014 as part of the Life Achievement Award they conferred on him then but the building of the house was only completed recently.
"We are in mourning but at the same time we are mourning Cde Chinx at a place that is worthy of a liberation war icon," Grace said.
Grace, who claims to be a fitness fanatic, recently said that she spends hours on the treadmill while listening to local music including Cde Chinx's popular song Hondo Yeminda.
"I support local content, only local content. In the gym, I alternate, I go onto the machine, I go onto the dance floor. Hondo Yeminda is my best song, it is number one," Grace said during the handover of the house to Cde Chinx by Zima.
Source - dailynews
