Stefanus Nambara
NKURENKURU – The two Kavango regions held the first launch of the just introduced Kavango Music Awards (Kama) in Nkurenkuru.
The awards, meant to recognise Kavango music that has for many years not been recognised at national level, will be held annually.
“The idea of hosting the Kama came about when we realised there is a lot of talent in the two Kavango regions that are not being recognised,” the executive director of the Kama, Isa Saidi said.
“We have been following the Namibia Annual Music Awards and there are categories like Best Oviritje and others, but there hasn’t been for best Kavango to also showcase that there is music happening in our two regions,” Saidi stated.
The awards are also meant to enhance and promote a uniformed approach in the marketing of the musical talent in the two regions.
During the launch and announcement of nominated artists ceremony, Saidi called on artists from the two regions to be united, saying this is just the beginning and a lot can be achieved through unity.
Saidi said preparations are going well, although there is a major challenge of funding the project. Getting sponsors on board is also another hiccup; hence, he appealed to the business community to sponsor it, as they would like to make it a legacy in the years to come.
He thanked the Namibian Society of Composers and Authors of Music (Nascam) for the support, as it has made things easier to approach business people, as well as music listeners and artists to see that the project is legitimate.
According to him, the response from artists has been overwhelming, as close to 48 entries were received for nominations.
A Rundu based artist M-Gee, whose real name is Thomas Lucas, welcomed the idea of hosting the awards, saying that it will attract and unearth many young artists from the two regions.
The second launch of the awards is slated for 29 February 2020 in Rundu, while the actual awards for this year are slated for 1-3 May 2020. The first day will be for performances, the second day will be the actual day of the awards, and the third day will be the closure.
There is a total of 13 categories and the voting will be done via SMS. Voting procedures and dates will be announced in due course.