Roki the youths favourite

the ultimate crowd-pleaser on the Youth Festival last Sunday, lifting appreciative patrons into a state of musical ecstasy at the Harare International Conference Centre in Harare.

Meanwhile the beef running deep in the urban grooves music genre played out on stage.

Seemingly quite relaxed, the charismatic King Labash was, nonetheless, far from subtle as he took calculated jabs at arch-rival Madiz, at one time stating that accusations that he had stolen Madiz’s cellphone were “rubbish”.

In addition, he also reeled off some of the popular clash songs from previous showdowns, including Big Up Rasta and Anonymous. He also openly endorsed Winky D, who is seemingly at odds with King Labash, over the King of Dancehall crown.

Prior to his performance, which started with the entire audience in waiting, Winky D was officially crowned the local ‘King of the Dancehall’ by the fans. To show his appreciation, when he returned to perform, he sang and danced up a storm, clearly reminding his fans that he is still a performer at the top of his craft.

Roki, who hit centre-stage prior to his set with immigration problems in Malaysia, declared at the outset that his performance was dedicated to Pauline and would be one devoid of contentious issues. True to his words, Roki delivered a mature set in which he used no expletives nor took any jab at any other artiste, belting his dedication to his wife, Paulina.

Meanwhile Winky D, in belting out songs such as ‘Godo’ and the ‘One One’, and others laced with social commentary, he pretty much took on the role of both the poor people’s governor and wise young statesman on other national matters.

Madiz, who was at the centre of lyrical feuds with King Labash, was also in sparkling form. After making a spectacular entry, the lanky recording artist made his mark, dancing his way through songs like Madam Chamunoda.

But it was Roki and his dancer Melody, aka Chocolate,’s show of flesh on her well-toned body which had a few male members of the audience both drooling and shouting out compliments. When she ended her creative stint with Roki, there was no doubt she had made an impressive mark.

For many fans, it would appear, from their non-stop shouts of approval, that Roki and Winky D did the trick for them and clearly with much justification. In a meticulously planned set, King Labash, Madiz and Sniper Storm took the venue by storm, rolling out hits with relative ease.

Sniper was good, but not brilliant, despite reeling off many of his hits, the likes of Winky D and Roki, were both on cue and full of vibes. Roki walked through his growing catalogue with nonchalant ease, creating much excitement along the way.