I hired Msiz’Kay for my wedding, and you should too

Msiz’Kay at the Whande wedding

I hired Msiz’Kay to perform at my wedding and his performance made my day even more special. Here is why I got Msiz’Kay as the wedding entertainment and why you should consider it as well.

The discussion around the plight of Zimbabwean artists is trending again thanks to the Nash TV contracts debacle. This has inspired me to challenge the public on how we can do more to provide lucrative opportunities for Zimbabwean artists so that they aren’t subjected to the exploitative ones which are currently the only option on the table.

He is genuinely talented

Before you hire an artists to perform, you need to be sure that they can perform live. I watched Msiz’Kay’s performance at the women’s business conference and I was impressed. He wasn’t running out of air, it wasn’t pitchy and he delivered the song as is. This assured me that I was getting my money’s worth. I knew what to expect when he comes to perform at my wedding.

He has a wide range of love songs

Hiring an artist with plenty of songs gives you more options to choose from. I knew I wanted Msiz’Kay to perform 3 songs. These 3 tracks would be for the bridal team’s entrance, our first dance and during the cake cutting. It was difficult to cut down the song choices to 3 but we eventually did it. The fact that he sings in vernacular was an added bonus which aligned to my traditional wedding theme.

He is professional

Engaging and booking Msiz’Kay was a seamless transaction. I had no negotiations, back-and-forth drama or outrageous demands. I didn’t see Msiz’Kay’s rehearsal for my wedding. This was a risk but it paid out. Honestly, I didn’t have time to and the videos of his performances were satisfactory. On my actual wedding day, he arrived before my cake and before my guests. I greeted him and went back to do what brides do on their wedding day which is yell at the other service providers. Him and the backup vocalists were dressed appropriately in my wedding colours. They were polite to my guests and smiled for selfies and photographs. Their joyful vibe added to the ambience of my wedding.

https://twitter.com/lnyamoto/status/1342903216535707650

It exposes him to new audiences

Half of my wedding guests were not from Bulawayo. Most of them had never heard of Msiz’Kay. Believe it or not, for people to discover new music, they need to be exposed to it first. That’s what Asaph Afrika meant when he said, “if they play it in the Honda Fit it would be the sound of the city dawg.” My best friend automatically became a Msiz’Kay fan and now everytime his song comes on the radio my mother in law will make sure I know about it.

Ultimately, there’s a role for all of us to play in the development of the arts industry. Find what works for you and your budget for at least one artist. You don’t know what kind of doors that will open for them. Artists, please be worth hiring. Every performance, no matter the size of the audience, is important. You never know who knows who in the audience.