Bruce Ndlovu , Sunday Life Reporter
FOR seven festive seasons, between 2012 and 2018, the Kalawa Homecoming dominated showbiz conversations in Bulawayo and beyond.
Right around this time, debates would be raging about an event that was as much a feature of the festive season as the famous “seven colours” without which a Christmas plate cannot be said to be balanced.
Questions would be asked on who had made the list and who had not. There would even be wild speculation about the order in which the artistes would perform.
Dalubuhle Sibanda
Since 2018, however, the face of festive season entertainment in Bulawayo has changed. The Kalawa Homecoming is fast fading into distant memory, with Kalawa Jazmee head honcho Oskido all but abandoning a concept that was rumoured to be bringing him a substantial windfall every festive season.
In place of the Homecoming, Bulawayo now plays host to events that, although star-studded, are scattered throughout the festive season.
As promoters eye a big payday from the coming festive season, with many diasporans set to grace Bulawayo after many failed to do so for the last few years due to Covid-19 travel restrictions, some might wonder if the Kalawa gap has been filled.
For Pub Lagondola manager Dalubuhle Sibanda, while there are a lot of events lined up, few have managed to capture the imagination of Bulawayo in the same manner as the Homecoming.
Joe Tha OG
“The thing is that Kalawa became more than an event. It became a culture, a Durban July of sorts in Bulawayo. Since Kalawa went away, we haven’t had a show that’s guaranteed to rock the city like it did.
We are not sure how successful they will be because we have had quite a few flops and these events just don’t capture the imagination the way Kalawa used to do.
“With Kalawa it was different. It became a calendar event and while I can miss out on a Trade Fair or any other kind of event, I could not miss out on Kalawa. It became that calendar event that everyone looked forward to. It was something with defined quality so I think we still need a Kalawa level event because it was something consistent, something that we knew would deliver top level entertainment,” he told Sunday Life in an interview.
Sibanda said the stature of the Homecoming could perhaps be attributed to the popularity of the Kalawa Jazzme stable itself. In a city obsessed with house and kwaito music, Kalawa Jazzme has always been celebrated in Bulawayo, not only for the hits it had churned out but due to the fact that it was founded by a Zimbabwean expatriate, Oskido (Oscar Mdlongwa).
Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF)
“By June you would have people talking and speculating about who would be coming to Kalawa. It was a pretty big deal but with the events that we have now, they just come and go. People actually planned their year around that date. For us in the industry, it was just amazing to watch XMO Squad grow step by step with the Kalawa concept. You can’t help but wish that it comes back again one day. It was something that we were invested in. Right now, it’s just shows after shows and more than anything else, the calendar feels cluttered.
“Right now, looking at the shows that are on the cards, even myself as someone in the entertainment industry, I don’t have any show in particular that I can say I want to particularly attend. The star power is undeniable, the likes of Zinhle and Murdah Bongz come with big reputations but you can’t exactly say their presence is going to change the face of the city for that night. The influence that Kalawa as a stable had on Bulawayo just captured the imagination. That’s why if you go on Facebook right now, you will see a lot of people that have ‘works at Kalawa’ on their profiles. That is just the kind of influence that the stable had on the city,” he said.
Zinhle
Promoter Joe tha OG, however, believes that while the Homecoming once illuminated the festive season in Bulawayo, its moment in the sun has passed.
Joe said those born after the year 2000 in particular do not remember the Kalawa invasions and have no particular attachment to it.
“It’s funny how time flies because now you have these young 2Ks that don’t know much about the Kalawa events. If you look at last week, with the HCM Festival, it had thousands of people and these people are coming from other parts of the country. I remember there were these two guys that approached me and said we are well organised. These gentlemen are from Malawi and I don’t even know what they were doing in Bulawayo but they were enjoying themselves. Kalawa’s time is over now.
They played their role and they gave direction to our festive season and now you can tell that promoters feel like they can push these events and also make their money,” he said.
Covid-19
In Kalawa’s absence, Joe said other promoters had stepped up in a major way.
“I think things have evolved to the next level now. If you look at the December calendar, you’ll realise that we have more than enough events there. Just recently, we had that HCM Fest at Trade Fair which was not exactly like Kalawa but it resembled it in terms of the fact that it is a festival and it had a lot of acts, from local to SA. From there we have more acts coming, so I think now the gap is now null and void. We are not feeling the absence because we have events left, right and centre,” he said.
Fellow promoter Marshall Mpofu said while they were keen to revive the Homecoming, other events lined up looked set to keep Bulawayo happy and dancing this festive season.
“We were now used to Kalawa and we cannot deny that but in reality, entertainment is entertainment. With what is lined up right now, people will be entertained. All that people need during the festive season is top-class entertainment to enjoy but I guess there was now an element of familiarity with Kalawa and that is why it may feel somewhat empty without it. Nonetheless, we were arranging to bring it back.
“Already the festive season has kicked off in earnest. You had last week’s mega show, now you will have Makhadzi and then you will have the likes of Big Nuz. The gigs that are lined up are pretty great but it’s hard to keep people’s minds off Kalawa because this was something that they had got used to as part of their December calendar,” he said.