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Jah Prayzah and Winky D

Bruce Ndlovu
WHILE the local music scene has been buzzing about the imminent release of Jah Prayzah’s latest album, Kutonga Kwaro, the man many view as his closest competitor for the throne, Winky D, has been conspicuous by his silence.

So deafening has been the silence that some are now wondering what exactly could be happening in the Gafa’s camp.

As Jah unleashes his album at the Harare International Conference Centre alongside Nigerian superstar Davido tonight, questions about what the wordsmith has been up to in the studio will more than likely intensify.

As Jah and Winky’s careers have soared in the last few years, it has become clear that it is no longer possible to mention one of them without reference to the other. Like Oliver Mtukudzi and Thomas Mapfumo, Alick Macheso and the late Tongai Moyo, the two have been joined at the hip by fate and only time’s surgical precision may separate them.

Although any “beef” between the two seems more imagined than real, the release of Prayzah’s latest star-studded effort will therefore raise questions about what the man the musical gods decided was to be his rival has been up to.

Recently, Winky has shown signs that something might be cooking in the Gafa camp, giving fans a taste of his song, Ma Drinks Mu Cup during live performances. When he performed the song at the Chibuku Neshamwari finals in Bulawayo recently, the crowd became electric, as if the few stanzas that the chanter recited were enough to show them that the song was another potential Winky hit in the making.

Snippets of that song performed live gave fans hope that a new single or album was just around the corner but alas, the Gafa camp has chosen to play its cards close to the chest, refusing to divulge any information about whatever the star has been working on.

According to Winky’s manager Jonathan Banda, this is something deliberate and whether Ma Drinks Mu Cup is the lead single from a new project remains to be seen.

“We’ve got our own way of doing things as a brand. With that in mind, I cannot say whether that song is the new single or not. When the time comes for us to officially release a single, then we’ll do so,” he said.

In the past, Winky’s albums have been released close to the festive season, something that has allowed him to cash in on the lucrative festive season period.

In 2015, Disappear dominated December playlists while several songs from Gafa Futi also bossed the charts as 2016 drew to a close.

With that in mind, many would have thought that now is the time to release an album, something that many of his peers in the industry are doing.

Besides Jah Prayzah, Oliver Mtukudzi, Ammara Brown and ExQ have indicated that they have albums in the pipeline while wayward chanter, Souljah Luv, will launch his next Saturday.

With the big names threatening to unleash their latest albums, could the Gafa be feeling the squeeze?

“Winky D has no competition. He’s his own competition. He doesn’t make music for the competition, but for himself and his fans,” said Banda, cautioning fans against being hasty, as good things come to those who wait.

“I can’t announce the dates for an album or single. All I can say is that fans should wait as there could be something around the corner,” he said.