Sad Lucius Banda

When we talk of Malawi music, the name Lucius Banda is mentioned with veneration. He has done it all. He has had the best hits. He has had one of the longest surviving musical bands, Zembani. He has also shown us the other side of his music promoting prowess when he has managed to bring into the current some big international musical names.

It was therefore sad when I saw a newspaper article last week which quoted Lucius Banda saying he would want to go back to his old basics of international ways by reverting to the kind of album like his debut 'Son of a Poor Man' which was all done in English except for the track 'Mabala'.

What is even more disturbing is that Lucius says this at the occasion of announcing plans to release an album to mark 25 years of his glowing musical career.

With this longevity you would expect him to look at these things with a sharp musical eye.

Before you look at me as someone who is only trying to have a dig at the iconic 'political' musician I will take you back to artists like Zimbabwean Jah Prayza for example or Congolese Kanda Bongoman, Mafikizolo of South Africa or Nigerian Davido etc. When you listen to music that has sold these names to the world, you will appreciate that it was not about English, nor was it about reggae.

For an artist worth his salt, Lucius Banda should know that music alone is a language. It is a universal language that permeates through any other communication barriers.

In the interview Lucius says that he has always tried to survive the industry by changing some basics. He was saying all this because he has recently released a single called 'I do' produced by DJ Sley. He says he wanted the modern urban beat, in other words, he was testing the waters.

I find all this talk full of some hogwash considering that this track can fall within the genre makeup of his other track found in the album called 15-15 released on October 29, 2012 called 'start again please'.

Before we can talk of his English claims, let's look at the performance of the 'Son of a Poor Man' on the international market. Did it break any glass ceiling on the world market? Is it Lucius' biggest album of all his albums in terms of international appeal? I don’t believe if you are to be honest, you would answer these questions in affirmative.

Now, going down the road, you will discover that Lucius Banda has done English tracks in his albums. Have these songs, I mean done in English, carried the day on the international music scene?

All I am saying is that it is not the language or the reggae genre that can make one local artist command some international attraction and charm its way into the Japanese, Nigerian, American or the English music consumer market.

Take Oliver Mtukudzi for example, he has laid claim to the piece of cake even when most of his tracks that got the world's attention were done in Shona language and Zimbabwean Mbira genre.

As Lucius has rightly realised that why he has survived all the years is by changing the basics, he has to realise that if after 25 years he has not hit the international jackpot, then the solution is indeed changing the basics.

He is however re-looking at wrong basics; it is not the language or genre because if he will waste time on these he would be treating a wrong malaise.

He needs to have a Lucius Banda identity. He cannot compete with Jamaican reggae artists who are already doing great in this area. They are also doing it in English by the way.

You cannot ignore Lucius Banda. Whether you love or hate him you will still pay attention when he makes any slight move.

That's why I am comforted in the fact that he has once proclaimed that his trademark would now be songs like the ‘Zulu Woman’ found in his ‘Freedom’ album.

But as has been the case following this declaration – the tracks come in different shapes and shades.