Zimbabwe shall be hosting the inaugural Pabodzi Music Conference in July 2021. The national music conference will run under the theme “Co-creating Value”.
By Plot Mhako
The word Pabodzi means One or simply togetherness and the summit aims to bring the entire music and related industries under one roof.
Zimbabwe’s musical heritage is extraordinarily rich and diverse, having morphed into different forms over the course of times. Its success is largely tied to stakeholder ability to accept this and strategise to the overall advantage of the sector.
Pabodzi
The conference programme brings a rich mix of music stakeholders from Zimbabwe, the Zimbabwean diaspora and some international guests with a view to co-create, exchange ideas and create synergies that unlock value across the music industry value chain.
The all-music initiative comes on the backdrop of two genre specific music summits that have been running over the past three years, the Zim Hip Hop Summit and the ZimDancehall summit.
The event to be held annually will host important discussions, Talks, panels, keynotes, presentations, workshops, networking sessions, and product exhibitions.
In a statement released by the conference spokesperson Tarisai Kanyama she said, “It is instructive that the conference illuminate discussions pertaining to the deployment and harnessing of digital tools which are key and critical to respond to both the Fourth Industrial Revolution and the post-COVID19 new normal where music business will reflect changes in the digital space. Since the emergence of COVID19, music growth prospects have noticeably dimmed.”
The moratorium on public performances have left not only musicians struggling to make ends meet but also placed considerable pressure on other stakeholders owing to liquidity challenges.
Tarisai Kanyama
She added that large areas of the economy have been affected, particularly, entertainment which requires a rethink on how stakeholders will deal with the environment going forward.
It is anticipated that the conference will bring in multiple experts with demonstrable understanding of this new normal which should go a long way in enhancing independent, innovative and critical thinking towards the application of technologies especially in music distribution and a value chain.
The conference is the brainchild of Pabodzi Curators a group of young Zimbabwean creatives who are music researchers working in the country and the diaspora in various capacities documenting and promoting local music towards the development of a viable industry.
The ground breaking and transformative music conference will be making announcements in due course.
earground 