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.
