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Wayne Chiridza, Showbiz Reporter

That Luveve Boy, rapper Cal Vin is a disgruntled man as he feels music promoters and radio stations who must support and promote artistes in Bulawayo are in fact belittling them. 

With a tone that sounded very disheartened, Cal Vin opened up and raised his concerns in a new catchy freestyle dubbed I’m So Bulawayo which was released on YouTube earlier this week. 

On the freestyle, Cal Vin who was disappointed at the Bulawayo Shutdown after being given an early slot at that show, talks about how he and other artistes in Bulawayo are not being recognised and are in fact being mistreated, something which he said inspired the freestyle. 

He had no kind words for the city’s top radio station, Skyz Metro FM – which doubled up as a music promoter when they organised the Bulawayo Shutdown. Despite the station giving him an early slot which saw him perform for a handful of people, Cal Vin said the radio station, which he once had issues with in 2017 over a delay in payment of performance fees, was not playing his new music as they want to make him irrelevant. 

“. . . even radio stations ain’t playing my new songs, they want to make me an opening act for these new what. . . They don’t wanna see us win in a f***** radio,” raps Cal Vin on the freestyle. 

He went on to rap about how the radio station wanted his talent to go unnoticed by international record label, Universal Music Africa which was in town for the Bulawayo Shutdown as he performed early in the night before the Universal crew was at the show’s venue.

“. . . so Universal never saw a nigga, that don’t mean Universal will never know a nigga because truth be told, I’m the only universal nigga. I’m so Bulawayo even if you call me bitter.” 

Explaining the freestyle, Cal Vin yesterday said: “When I composed the freestyle, my thought process was on the injustices that the music industry is doing on Bulawayo artistes. I’ve been working hard as a Bulawayo artiste and I feel we’re not being rewarded for the hard work.”

As someone who has been in the industry for years, the artiste said he was angered by the fact that Bulawayo artistes are now seen as curtain raisers.

“I was made a curtain raiser at the recent Bulawayo Shutdown and this was unfair as this show had Universal coming through and yet I had to perform before they were on the scene (venue). These shows should be about promoting us Bulawayo artistes and put us and our music out there,” said Cal_Vin.

“We’re now just mere curtain raisers for some other artistes who’re not from the city but these shows are held in our town.”

The artiste said he also feels like there are people who are out to destroy him as most music promoters are being told that he is difficult to work with.

“I don’t know who has been going behind my back as promoters are being told I’m hard to work with. Every time someone books me, they tell me they’ve been told I’m difficult to work with. Thing is, I speak out so maybe that’s why they think I’m hard to work with,” said Cal Vin.

On his new music, Cal Vin who last year released an album, Intwana kaManax, said it was saddening that despite submitting his music to stations like Skyz Metro FM for airplay, they were still playing his old music. 

“I have new music that I have released in recent times but they (Skyz Metro) keep playing my old songs. They’re not being fair as my fans who listen to the radio don’t have an opportunity to hear my new music.

 “To someone new, it seems like I haven’t been doing anything as they keep on hearing old songs,” said a distraught Cal Vin.

However, Cal Vin said he will remain proud of his city and not let any of these obstructions deter him from pushing his brand and music and uplifting up-and-coming artistes through his Kontrol Tribe record label.

“This year, I’m all about securing the bag. I’m going international. With my new album already in the oven baking, 

‘‘I’ll be featuring big names like Gasmilla from Ghana and I’m also aiming to work with the likes of Winky D and Jah Prayzah this year as a way of being a multi-genre artiste,” he said. – @waynecas