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Bongani Ndlovu, Showbiz Correspondent
Afro-pop musician, Mzoe 7’s nomination at the Zimbabwe Music Awards (Zima) in the Best Kwaito/House/Dance category, is a sign that his music is being accepted by a cross-section of Zimbabweans.

Mzoe 7 is nominated alongside DJ Naida, John Cole, Tebza and Novuyo Seagirl at the awards that are expected to be held on February 20 in Harare.

This is his third nomination at the Zimas after his 2016 nomination in the Best Alternative category and 2017 when he was nominated for Best Single. He did not win on both occasions.

Describing the nomination as an honour, Mzoe 7 (real name Mzoebanzi Mlauzi) said he deserved the recognition as he put in a lot of work last year. “It’s an honour to be recognised nationally especially at a stage like the Zima awards.

It’s every artiste’s dream to be able to cross over nationally and internationally.

“Last year, I really put in the work and the lockdown actually helped me embrace my other strengths and talents,” said Mzoe 7. The Bulawayo-based artiste paid tribute to his colleagues who he said ensured they put out a good product.

“I owe it to the team I worked with last year – Shekinah, Tumelo, DJ Pressure, Rasquesity of Keaitse Films, Hitkid, Puzzle Moment Pictures, Eskhosini, Blaze and many more as they made sure we had the best product,” said Mzoe 7.

Last year was the year he released his hit Amapiano track Asambeni that has been given rotation on various radio stations and featured on various chart shows. The song’s video that features Thandanani Women’s Ensemble, is also doing fairly well with over 30 000 views on YouTube.

Mzoe 7 congratulated his fellow nominees and made special mention to Asaph who is nominated for the MTV Africa Music Awards.

Sharing his plans for the year, the artiste said he is looking forward to releasing his debut album which was supposed to have been released last year.

“I halted my album release last year due to reasons beyond my control. However, I’m looking at finishing it this year and serving people with my first ever studio album titled UCA (United Country of Africa). People should also expect more visuals from this year because we need more online visibility especially now when we can’t do live events,” said Mzoe 7.

Turning to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic that has disrupted the arts industry, Mzoe 7 said life as an artiste has generally been tough.

“Covid has been a challenging phase but we continue to soldier on, though we’ve been drained emotionally and financially. However, we’re looking forward to giving our people hope and good music,” he said.