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Bongani Ndlovu, Showbiz Correspondent 

TODAY is the day of reckoning for the Roil Bulawayo Arts Awards (RoilBAA) with the awards show expected to be better than the previous two editions. 

The awards, which were previously held at the Large City Hall, will be held at a way bigger venue, the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair Hall 4, as event organisers seek to grow the event.

Organisers are targeting 5 000 people to fill up the venue which is four times bigger than their usual patronage of just above a 1 000 people. 

It’s a make or break this year as the fear of empty seats very much lingers in the minds of organisers and also those who have believed in the dream for years. If the seats are taken up, it will be vindication that the awards have grown and for sure the city really comes to a standstill for what is touted as the biggest dress up event in Bulawayo. 

Away from the crowd that is expected to fill the venue, the artistes will be performing on one of the biggest stages in the land with the best sound system. The roping in of Events Evolution – the country’s biggest sound, stage and lighting company shows how serious RoilBAA organisers are about raising the bar as they only want the best for their show.

For the past two editions, the Large City Hall stage has been the place where artistes have been working from, but now, they will have a feel of a stage which has been rocked by the likes of Deborah Fraser, Dr Tumi, Mathias Mhere and Indosakusa during the Gwanda Gospel Show. Artistes will have to show some wizardry on it to impress the multitudes at the venue and those who will watch the show live on Facebook on the Cite page. Fortunately, the artistes performing tonight such as Cal_Vin, Sandra Ndebele and Novuyo Seagirl seem to appreciate that this is a defining moment as they have been hard at work rehearsing, preparing for the day. 

The third edition of the awards are definitely a defining moment for the organisers as it seems more sponsors have jumped on board to help honour the city’s artistes and ride on the hype to market their brands. The awards ceremony has long ceased to be exclusively for Bulawayo, but now the country’s eyes are fixated on the City of Kings to see the talent on stage and the glitz and glam. People like radio personality, MisRed, have decided to be part of the glitz and have even gone as far as looking for a designer (from Bulawayo) to make a dress for her to wear at the awards, showing how much the event has grown. 

It is also rumoured that Harare businessman, Genius “Ginimbi” Kadungure, is also making his way to Bulawayo for the awards. 

Speaking ahead of the event, one of the organisers, Raisedon Baya, said through Thursday night nominees’ dinner, he noticed that they were heading in the right direction. At the dinner that was held at the ZITF Hall 5, people came out dressed to the nines for the appreciation event. Although they were dressed down, what they wore — innovative dresses, suits and outfits — stood out and showed that tonight will be one hell of a night on the red carpet. 

“We’re excited that the event will happen and indications from Thursday’s dinner show that we’re moving in the right direction. This year’s event will be a step above last year definitely,” said an optimistic Baya. We want the awards to become the biggest dress up event, not only in Bulawayo, but in Zimbabwe.”

He said the only way to achieve this was to get a buy in from the community.

“The only way we can make it a big event is when the community buys into the idea. With the buzz around the city, we’re hoping that more people buy tickets and fill up Hall 4 at the Zimbabwe International Exhibition Centre.”

Whatever happens tonight, at the end, it shall be a memorable night and will be lodged in the annals of history and hopefully, be an inspiration to other provinces to hold such awards for their artistes in future.