Uchandifunga and another romantic track Zviriko were
released last month by Roki courtesy of controversial Pastor Passion Java’s
record stable, Passion Java Records.
Music lovers welcomed the development with some giving
credit to Pastor Java for bringing back the Chidzoka hit maker to the limelight
while others have queried the union, which they view as not sincere.
Without much doubt, Roki is one of the most revered vocalists
in the country and his name has been thrown in whenever music followers discuss
the best in the era after the year 2000, but his recent comeback into the scene
has gotten people talking.
Roki is among the pioneers of urban grooves music, a genre
he has tried to protect over the years with or without benefactors.
Urban grooves became popular around the year 2000, when the
government made a deliberate policy of promoting local arts by enforcing a 75%
threshold for broadcasting local content on national media.
Last Wednesday, Congolese Soukus superstar Koffi Olomide
jetted into the country for a collaboration with Roki.
Java is said to have arranged the collaboration, another
move that has raised eyebrows among music fans.
After Java’s appointment as vice-president of the Zanu
PF-connected Affirmative Action Group (AAG) and his recent endorsement of
President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s 2023 presidential re-election bid, music
enthusiasts believe Roki could be sacrificing talent at the altar of political
expediency.
“The recent development involving Roki and Passion points
to a ‘deal’ that is not sincere. It’s good for Roki since he had been quiet,
but to me I believe someone is pushing for his political agenda,” said an arts
critic, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
However, renowned arts critic Plot Mhako said the union was
likely to benefit both sides. “I think the association may bring some positive
results. Passion Java appreciates the amazing talent Roki has,” Mhako said.
“He has for a while been talking about him and what he sees
in him. Roki will have his career revived as long as he gets serious and puts
in the work. this could be transformative in a major way to the Zimbabwean
music industry as a whole.
“On sincerity, I think time will tell, it will be unfair to
dismiss the efforts and be pessimistic judging by the work that has been done
so far.
“Passion Java, like any citizen, has his right to political
association and that may not directly impact Roki who is greatly loved and
appreciated by the masses in similar fashion to the late great Soul Jah Love.”
Interestingly, on one hand, some believe Java comes with
honest intentions, while others think he is out to strengthen his brand through
Roki’s influence as he has ostensibly done with other musicians.
His relations with artistes, including Enzo Ishall, South
Africa-based Buffalo Soulja, Uncle Epatan and Chillspot Records, among many
others, have helped spur his name to greater heights more than empower the
artistes, making it hard to imagine that Roki’s fate will not be any different.
Meanwhile, surpassing the million YouTube views by the
video Uchandifunga has divided opinion among music lovers with a significant
number questioning the legitimacy of the milestone.
There is wide belief that the views were boosted through
YouTube view bots that run in the background to automatically increase the view
count of videos.
“We celebrate @roki_zw and we don’t need the bogus numbers.
I’m offended,” award-winning music video director Blaqs commented on Instagram.
Mhako described the feat as a needless “act of fiction”.
“I am convinced the views were an act of fiction. The
number of views and engagement has a huge unexplainable discrepancy,” Mhako
said.
“The content owners [Passion Java Records Studios]
struggled to explain the jump of over 800 000 in one day. They had to celebrate
with explanations and that says a lot.”
True to these sentiments, the stable has failed to
convincingly explain the views in what has sparked debate over the owner’s,
Passion Java, genuineness in Roki’s renewed path to stardom.
At the top of what fuels such kind of conversations has
been how music promoter and self-proclaimed prophet Java is feeding off Roki’s
loyal fan base by making him somewhat a poster boy for Passion Java Records
studios.
As if to confirm the idea, the musician’s great return is
being largely attributed to Java more than his own talent and that raises a
stink.
It is hard to ascertain what the controversial cleric’s
intentions are, but he is on record saying that he loves the spotlight and
heavily invests in building his brand.
Although Roki’s music journey has been riddled with
uncertainties largely owing to controversy, his talent is one thing that has
not been doubted.
He is one person with ears waiting to listen and Java, a
businessman, knows and sees opportunity in that.
Ultimately, only time will tell if Java will definitely
give more for Roki than he is set to benefit, but tactics like buying views, if
true, could be detrimental to the authenticity of Roki’s brand
“The practice (buying YouTube views) is frowned upon as it
is unethical and affects one’s social media ratings.
“Artistes use social media numbers and following as a
symbol of status and also as a currency to transact, so any false or altered
reality has a bearing on the future,” says Mhako. Standard
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