Some say music is life. Many believe that life itself would be meaningless without music. But if one takes a little time to listen to the lyrics of the songs that young people currently dance to, one would be shocked.
Killer T-Dakuibuditsa ndobva ndaidzosera; Lady B- sheka mpunduru and Jah love -Gumkum are all poisoning the minds of youths. Yet no one is talking, and society is either resigned to its fate, chasing after the ever elusive dollar – or maybe they are not listening hard enough.
Many believe that the music being played at parties, night clubs, on the streets and in some homes these days does not just pollute the mind but does no good to society at large.
Some studies suggest that over 65 per cent of young people aged between 15-30 years enjoy music like Dakuibuditsa, whatever that means. But those who understand say it means sexual intercouse.
A visit to informal music outlets in Harare revealed that music with lurid contents is in high demand.
Mercy Shoko, a CD vendor in Harare, told our reporter that this kind of music is in hot demand. “We sell over 30 CDs per day because people request for it more than the others,” she said.
Shoko does not really pay attention to the lyrics – she only plays the music to attract customers, as it is the in-thing among young people.
Tinashe Benhura, a student of Prince Edward Boys High, was at the stall to purchase the latest in dancehall music. When asked his opinion of dancehall music with lurid lyrics, he said the music was both good and bad.
Corrupting
“The music is good because it is entertainment, it enables us relax. But it is also corrupting little children. The music we play or listen to these days are too raw and many of my mates use these raw lyrics as slangs, which is not good,” he said. “But I don't think the music should be banned. They should only tell these artists, especially Lady B, to be careful with the words they use.”
The music of today is a reflection of what is on the mind of the singers and what they want the youths to be. “This is quite unfortunate – as if the situation in the country is not bad enough for the youth,” lamented Tawanda Chari, a student of the Christian College of Southern Africa in Harare.
He said anyone who was ignorant of what sex is all about would learn a lot by simply listening to the kind of music currently making waves in Zimbabwe. "The old school kind of music that our parents enjoyed was much better than the rubbish we are forced to listen to these days," he added.
Disgusting
A CD vendor in Mbare said the business of music used to be very interesting, but the latest trend was disgusting. "The music I listened to when we were kids played a large part in shaping my life. The message of the music then taught a lot of moral values, but today what we have is just noise," he said.
"I make a lot of money from selling the CDs, but it is not just about the money. We have to think about the young impressionable children. This music is killing their morals and it is going to affect the future of this great nation, I don't play it in my shop, if you hear it here, then I am just testing it for my customer. I have small boys around me, and if they ask me the meaning of the song, I won't be able to explain," he added.
A student who claims to be decent at home, said he enjoyed the so-called bad music in the company of friends at school or when they go out for parties. Some have them downloaded it on their phones and enjoy listening using the ear-piece or headphones.
Abominable
A parent, Ruth Masocha , said she didn't know how this abominable type of music found its way into the music market, considering that there was a censors board and other professional organisations that were supposed to regulate the content of music being released into the market .
"It is a great challenge for us as parents because it’s our responsibility to instil discipline into our children. But it is becoming more difficult by the day. Imagine you are with friends in the sitting room and your son comes in singing a song with some offensive lyrics about people having sex; it's very embarrassing," she said.
Masocha added that the music circulating in the country could be referred to as ‘audio pornography’. “We need to protect our children against it,” she added.
Senseless
Pastor Thomas Chikwadze of Christian Mission International Mufakose, believes that local music today, especially the popular dancehall genre, is senseless, not creative and without value.
"In the past, musicians composed very beautiful and creative songs to inspire the younger generation. Their music also made the older people proud, because there used to be a lot of sense and lessons to learn from such songs, but the case is different now.
"Musicians, or maybe we should call them singers, because very few of them can play any musical instrument, just insult each other, make a lot of noise about some person in the society, or sing songs that only corrupt younger people. Music, to me, has lost its value as far as Zimbabwe is concerned," the cleric said.
Admore Tamuka , a senior manager in a multinational company, stated that his children do not listen to such poisonous music due to their environment.
Rubbish
"They attend quality schools and travel out of the country for summer, so I know the kind of music my children listen to. I love jazz and my wife enjoys rhythm and blues, so its difficult for them to listen to this rubbish they call music," he said.
Not a few Zimbabweans have raised eyebrows about the corrupting influence of this music on society, but the artists still believe that there is nothing wrong with their kind of music.
In an interview done for this article, a fan only identified as Adrian said since many people enjoyed music with content relating to sex, it was only natural for some people to hate it.
"These guys have done other kinds of songs before but those ones were never accepted. Now everybody wants to listen to them because of these same lyrics some of you condemn. It is true that the music can corrupt children, but that is why you have parental guidance," he added.
But analysts and other sociologists believe that most parents have lost their grip on their children due to the harsh economic situation – which is why the sons and daughters of well-respected people in society can now write songs that are not only capable of bringing shame to the family but also of destroying the moral values of an entire generation.
Post published in: Analysis