ARTISTS\u2019 products are a reflection of the society that they live in.\u00a0 Artists enlighten the society that is the reason artists \u2013 in which ever genre \u2013 are expected to set the agenda when there is a common cause for the society to pursue.<\/p>\n
As Malawi\u2019s Independence Day approaches, artists would be engaged in different activities to celebrate Malawi\u2019s independence. Musicians Union of Malawi (Mum) president, Reverend\u00a0 Chimwemwe Mhango, said it is very important for artists to take part in national celebrations.<\/p>\n
\u201cArtists are entertainers and Independence Day is about celebrating our independence; as such, there is no proper celebration without entertainment. As I was growing up, I remember that each and every band that was popular at that time was invited to perform at various events to commemorate the day,\u201d Mhango said.<\/p>\n
Mhango said that, as a union, they were not happy with the turn of events. \u201cWe are a bunch of neglected people because this could have been the time the government and other stakeholders could approach us to perform at various Independence Day events but it is not the case as the government concentrates on traditional dances,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Mhango said there are effects of excluding artists in national celebrations. \u201cIt\u2019s like having relish without spices. In so doing, you miss out on certain ingredients which could have made the relish to smell and taste good. Without music, I don\u2019t think the celebrations can reach their climax,\u201d he said. However, Mhango was quick to point out that, as a union, they have not organised anything to mark the day. \u201cBut some individual artists have and we look forward to such shows,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Kwathu Drama Group actor, Eric Mabedi, said, as a group, they have organised various shows to celebrate the day. The group has three shows between July 2 and 8 in Mwanza, Blantyre and Lilongwe and it will be the best time to launch their new play. Mabedi said, as artists, they realise that no celebration can take place without artists.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is no celebration that can take place without involving artists. And this is no ordinary drama show as we have included some extra activities to commemorate the day. There will be acoustic performances and poetry recitals,\u201d Mabedi said.<\/p>\n
Lilongwe-based musician, Lulu, said it is significant for artists to take part in national celebrations. \u201cArtists help to keep the celebration lively, otherwise, it can be boring for people to just listen to speeches,\u201d he said. Lulu said he would have loved to have some performances on the day.<\/p>\n
\u201cUnfortunately, I will be in Scotland but if things do not go as planned then I will surely hold some few shows,\u201d Lulu said. Time for charity Bossaro Music Group (BMG), which recently announced that it will be actively involved in charity work to improve the lives of people in the society, said the ideal way to celebrate independence is to work together as artists and raise enough money to help the vulnerable groups. BMG member Dalitso Mtambo, well-known as Iceberg or Bossaro Ice, said of course independence is about celebrations but artists can do more for the society.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs entertainers, we need to entertain the people while at the same time reflecting on what those who lived before us sacrificed for us to enjoy this freedom. What the artists can do is to maintain that freedom. \u201cHowever, we also realise that this could have been the moment for artists to work together and do some charity work and support community initiatives which will uplift the lives of vulnerable groups,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Role of entertainment venues Owners of entertainment venues have also come up with some initiatives to celebrate Independence Day.<\/p>\n
Fifteen Sports Bar & Lounge, a trendy club in Mandala, Blantyre, will take the lead in celebrating Malawian Heritage on July 6 to offer unrivalled family entertainment. In a statement, co-owner of Fifteen Sports Bar and Lounge, James Makunje Jnr, said the country\u2019s Independence Day is the best opportunity to reflect on where we are coming from and what we collectively want to achieve as Malawians.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe most important thing is to celebrate our heritage. Once we accept who we are, the next step is to move forward and achieve our dreams. We should surely utilise the independence that we enjoy to make the country\u2019s future bright,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Makunje said the choice of the theme \u2018Proudly Malawi Day\u2019 is befitting considering that families rarely have the opportunity to celebrate together. \u201cMalawi is a communal society which makes it possible to interact and share food and drinks. We know that not everyone would manage to go to their home districts [and] that is the reason we want to create an atmosphere that will give the patrons that feeling of being proudly Malawian,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Some of the activities on this day include gulewamkulu, beni, clothing stalls, food stalls, cocktails stands and big firework display. \u201cWe will have thobwa and other local foods which the patrons would enjoy.\u00a0 We promise huge fun on Independence Day and we believe a lot of people will come and celebrate with us,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
ARTISTS\u2019 products are a reflection of the society that they live in.\u00a0 Artists enlighten the society that is the reason artists \u2013 in which ever genre \u2013 are expected to set the agenda when there is a common cause for the society to pursue. As Malawi\u2019s Independence Day approaches, artists would be engaged in different […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":49109,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-49105","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.times.mw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49105","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.times.mw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.times.mw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.times.mw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.times.mw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49105"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/archive.times.mw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49105\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":49111,"href":"https:\/\/archive.times.mw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49105\/revisions\/49111"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.times.mw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/49109"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.times.mw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49105"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.times.mw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49105"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.times.mw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49105"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}