Zero audience for Jah Prayzah, Winky D show

It's confirmed. The much-anticipated "Best of Both Worlds" show featuring Jah Prazah and Winky D, that was cancelled at the last minute last week has now been approved and will go ahead virtually, on Saturday.

The event is being hosted by Kayse Connect and will be streamed live on Gateway Stream Music as a pay per view (PPV) act.

Yesterday,  Kayse Connect spokesperson Elton Kurima said the show will not have a physical audience.

"We have held meetings with police and other relevant authorities who have granted us clearance to host the show, but as agreed it will only be held virtually with no attendees except for the technical team," he said.

Kurima said the pay per view (PPV) fee remains at US$2.

"Nothing has changed, the PPV is US$2 and for those who had paid and were not reimbursed will still get the new link for viewing the show," he said. He said the show will start at 6pm prompt and end at 9pm with the same masters of ceremony.

"The show will be held under Covid-19 restrictions and guidelines. We will have the same masters of ceremony led by Star FM radio presenter Kudzai Violet Gwara (KVG). "They have already been paid upfront. The show will be held for three hours," he said.

However, Kurima said last time the show was cancelled because of logistical problems and more people were not allowed to enter.

"We had planned to have about 100 people but due to the nature of the artistes, the fans were too demanding and it was difficult to control them, especially under such Covid-19 conditions. So we have resolved with the authorities to have the event virtually," he said.

Kurima said about 70 people had paid for the initial live show while over 2 000 had paid for the pay-per-view streaming. It is now on the game of numbers on the PPV and will locals support such an initiative or will the Diasporas dominate the list?

Asked to elaborate on  how the system of PPV works, Gateway Stream Music project manager Ishe Makambira said the application is the first platform in Zimbabwe aimed at musicians and other artistes alike to enable them to monetise their music enterprise.

"PPV a fairly new concept in Zimbabwe which arrived on our doorsteps due to the Covid-19 lockdown restrictions.

"It enables the artistes to get back to work as currently they cannot host live shows where fans physically attend," he said. Makambira said the PPV is akin to  pay television or webcast service under  which a viewer can pay to view via private telecast.

"PPV enables fans to buy tickets and attend shows online from the comfort of their home or any location with access to internet connectivity. PPV is priced at a fraction of the cost of the normal physical shows," he said.

Makambira said the concept of the Gateway Stream Music web and mobile application is premised on the need to empower artistes.

"Our app gives artistse the opportunity to earn an income from live streaming their shows using the PPV platform which is within the app, unlike free live streaming where they do not earn any money from the live performance.

"For YouTube, one has to reach 1 million views to earn a pay cheque! Gateway Stream Music ensures artistes get paid for any airplay and receive their money immediately.

"This is the first ever of its kind and features two high profile artistes that have raised the Zim flag high and continue to be the most sought after artistes in the country.

"To make the concert more interesting, almost every one can now watch and also request a song from the artistes," he said.