When a cultural icon like Zola speaks out, the entertainment terrain in South Africa listens.
In a recent clip that has since gone viral, the Kwaito veteran had a few things to get off his chest about the country’s entertainment gatekeepers and their apparent lack of patriotism.
Watch: Zola speaks out against appropriation of US culture in Mzansi
Zola, born Bonginkosi Dlamini, has amassed a cult following as one of the most authentic artists in South Africa’s entertainment industry.
His passion is music but at the core, he really serves as a changemaker that seeks to affect lives positively with his insurmountable wisdom.
In a recent tweet, Zola made a few remarks about the current landscape of the entertainment industry.
Much to the appeasement of many, Zola addressed the elephant in the room in a frank and matter-of-fact way.
Cassper Nyovest hints at possible feature with Kwaito icon
In a nutshell, Zola called out the gatekeepers in charge of content rollouts and playlisting on TV and radio as the ones responsible for the death of South African culture in entertainment.
“We have not conquered TV. Until we conquer TV and change it and it sells ideas of Africa and South Africa, then grownups are going to continue saying that the youth is lost. The people who put content on TV and on radio are actually grownups who feel the need to hype American music and soapies against the creativity of South Africans.
“That’s why you read on newspapers that Brown Dash died broke, that Mandoza lost his R7.5 million home, or that two of Zola’s houses got auctioned,” he said.
His sentiment on the tarnished legacies of the likes of himself, the late Mandoza and others, due to financial constraints perpetrated by the U.S-first mindset in our industry was shared by many who applauded the veteran for speaking the truth.
Zola even got a nod from one of the leaders of the new school Cassper Nyovest, who admitted that it would be an honour to meet with the Kwaito pioneer for a conversation, even the possibility of a collaboration.
