The 8th edition of the Jacaranda Music Festival has been slated for the 4th of October, with more local and international artists billed to perform at the annual fiesta.

This year’s edition of the festival which is slowly becoming a regional attraction will see a star-studded lineup of local and international artists from countries, including South Africa, Zambia, Spain and the United States of America performing at the Thornpark Polo Club in Harare this October.

Jacaranda Music Festival Coordinator Walter Wanyanya said, “The highlight for this year is the move from Old Hararians to Thornpark. The next exciting thing is we have more artists coming this year. We have artists from Spain, the USA, Zambia and of course Zimbabwe. We come with diversity this year. We have strategic plans in action to make this a continental festival. We have managed to partner with other regional festivals.”

Officially launching the festival, the government emphasised the Second Republic’s commitment to creating a conducive environment for arts to thrive while promoting growth in the sector.

The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Sports, Recreation, Arts and Culture, Mr Nicholas Moyo said, “As a ministry, we have taken it upon ourselves to support an increase of such platforms. We have identified at least one festival in all provinces so that we have such platforms across the country. We want to support these festivals even financially and now even groups that will participate at national events will be remunerated and raise the quality of performers.”

The launch also brought to the fore the importance of the corporate world in growing the creative sector.

“We have a lot of talent in Zimbabwe but you know fame doesn’t pay the bills. You need support and we want to ensure that our artists get real value for the talent that they deliver to the citizens of Zimbabwe. They entertain us but it doesn’t make sense if they don’t earn a decent living. So, by supporting the Jacaranda Music Festival, we are providing employment for the artists and the many service providers that come to this festival.

“That’s a lot of wealth that flows through and it then goes beyond the festival. Other artists get noticed, they get more shows, more business and that is what we are about as Standard Bank Zimbabwe. When we say Zimbabwe is our home, we drive growth. So, it’s not just through normal banking products but through supporting the arts as we do, that’s also supporting the artists in their development,” said Stanbic Bank Zimbabwe’s head of brand and marketing, Mr Palmer Mugavha.

Among some of the international acts include South Africa’s Micasa, Casper Nyovest, Felo le tee, Zambia’s James Sakala, America’s performing arts group Backtrack Vocals and Spain’s Idoipe.

Local acts include Freeman, Feli Nandi, Nutty O, Mokoomba and Master H, among a host of other talented artists lined up for the three-day event.

ZBC News