Jazz it Up With the Sexy Zamajobe

Zamajobe’s powerful, beautiful, sexy voice, laced with a slight breathless edge and raw emotions, is probably what stops most in their tracks when they first hear her. Although relatively new to South Africa's music scene, Zamajobe is nevertheless all the rave.

Signed with Sony BMG Africa, Zamajobe's Ndawo Yami album got her nominated in four categories at the 2005 South Africa Music Awards: Best New Comer, Best Jazz Vocal Album, Best Joint composition [done with Erik Pilani], and Best Engineer. The gorgeous Zamajobe was very busy in the studio preparing for her next album when we got in touch with her for this interview. She, nevertheless, made a little time for us so you could get to meet her. When she makes her way, especially to the USA, know you got to know her, first, at LADYBRILLE.com.

Zamajobe has also agreed to give one lucky Ladybrille winner an autographed copy of her Album Ndawo Yami. Act now because you've got only six days left before our contests expires! Click this link to see how to win a copy of Zamajobe's "Magical" Ndawo Yami album.

GIVE ME THAT MAGIC



LADYBRILLE.com: Hi Zamajobe! How are you?
Zamajobe: Fabulous!

LADYBRILLE.com: A buddy of mine told me about you and he said, "You have to listen to her. You'll love her." I did! Your voice is so jazzy, sexy, and mature!
Zamajobe: Thank you and that’s very good to hear.

LADYBRILLE.com: I hear you have heavy influences from Christian and Gospel music, tell us about that? Zamajobe: I grew up going to church and singing in the choir. My Pastor was and still is one of the very best gospel musicians in SA, he is a very passionate and original artist and under his influence that’s when I fell deeply in love with music. So that’s when it all started for me.

LADYBRILLE.com: So, overall, how would you describe your musical style?
Zamajobe: African funk and a little bit of jazz and soul.

LADYBRILLE.com: Where do you find inspiration for your songs? Zamajobe: Somewhere inside of me and also through the meaning of life.

LADYBRILLE.com: Before we get into your album and its huge success so far, take our audience back to the Idol contest in South Africa [like American Idols]. I understand you were involved in the 2003 competition? Zamajobe: I was in the top ten and it’s been magic ever since!

LADYBRILLE.com: Okay, so your ALBUM! I love "Magic" and "Ndawo Yami." Magic is outstanding! What was the inspiration and who are you asking to show you how it feels to be loved? [smiles] Zamajobe: [smiles] Anybody who can.

LADYBRILLE.com: You are a mother now. Congratulations! How is that balancing act? Zamajobe: My little girl is a blessing. Her smile makes everything that’s difficult seem easy.

Ndawo Yami



LADYBRILLE.com: Alright some few random questions for you. What's the South African Music Scene like now? Zamajobe: the SA music scene is growing from strength to strength. We have to keep working on our skills and collectively make a difference.

LADYBRILLE.com: What are the main staples in your closet? Zamajobe: jeans and converse.

LADYBRILLE.com: What's your favorite color lipstick? Zamajobe: Brown

LADYBRILLE.com: How do you like to wear your hair? Zamajobe: Locks

LADYBRILLE.com: Do you plan on performing in the USA or Europe anytime soon? Zamjobe: I would love to. I have to find people I could work with in the different places.

LADYBRILLE.com: Where can our readers purchase your songs/CD?
Zamajobe: through Kalahari dot net i.e. http://www.kalakari.net/.

LADYBRILLE.com: Thanks Zamajobe, keep giving us that magic! Zamajobe: Thank you.

You can also visit Zamajobe's site, http://www.zamajobe.co.za/

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Africa's Music Industry Issues, Part II

This is Part II of our discussion on Africa’s Music Industry Issues. In Part I, Wale Ewedemi, a music industry insider and founder of the recently formed Nigeria Music Industry Association, discussed with us the current state of Africa’s music industry and intellectual property rights. Here, we continue with our insider as we explore issues around technology, distribution, advocacy, infrastructure, music authenticity and social media.

LADYBRILLE.com: Give us some examples of how technology is changing Africa's music industry?
Ewedemi: The GSM has really helped with ring tones and caller tunes. As a result, artists are able to make money. The bluetooth technology, however, allows sharing of music without payments. But, things are happening. Like the latest Nokia phone comes out with an African artist listed as a ring-tone on the phone. The studios are cheaper to run because of software that replaced the actual analogue studios. With a laptop, a four channel consul, a keyboard and a microphone, your home studio is ready at average price of $1,500.

LADYBRILLE.com:In the West, there have been strong opposition, particularly by music publishers and record labels to the whole digitalization of music via ITunes, Rhapsody, and Amazon movement. Does that hold true for Africa's record labels/music publishers?
Ewedemi: For us in Africa, that’s not yet a big problem because most of the population cannot afford blue-tooth phones, Ipods, laptops, MP3s and MP4 players. We still sell lots of CDs and tapes. That is a futuristic problem for us.

DISTRIBUTION
LADYBRILLE.com: Technology has made it easier for African artists to produce, reproduce and distribute music directly to their consumers on the internet, bypassing all the bureaucracies/politics of record labels/music publishers. But, what are the pitfalls of such a "distribution" system?
Ewedemi: For the African, technology has reduced production cost with compact studios and softwares that can do much in little time. The problem is the payment system. We are just evolving an online payment system. So, Africans [in Africa] cannot buy online like that. . .

LADYBRILLE.com: I have said so many times that Africa needs to be at the world's table lobbying and pushing policies that benefit Africa's entertainment and fashion industries. What can African citizens within and outside Africa do to help develop their music industries to make them a force to be reckoned with; and earn a sit at that table?
Ewedemi: First, we need to step up to the standards acceptable internationally. You have to understand that even African banks are finding it hard to get serious recognition. So, the music and fashion industry has to be restructured like the other industries are doing.

INFRASTRUCTURE & LEGISLATIVE ADVOCACY

LADYBRILLE.com: Sierra Leone's Chosan and Congo's Kaysha have said infrastructure is needed in the industry. Explain from the angle of artist, manager and record label the current infrastructure and the changes these artists speak of?
Ewedemi: The thing is, there is no structure right now. The definition of artist, manager and record label is subject to the personalities involved. That’s where an organization like mine needs to step in to create this structure through worldwide consultation . . .experiment with it and share this structure with other African economies.

LADYBRILLE.com: Speaking of your organization, how do you propose to balance issues of accessibility with fairness and proper safeguards as NMIA, for example, tries to create an infrastructure in Nigeria's music industry?
Ewedemi: I guess this is where we have to learn from other creative economies, the structures and safeguards they have put in place to help as we restructure our industry. NMIA is open to music industry legislation and safeguards from around the world.

LADYBRILLE.com:Does NMIA include a Governmental Affairs body that can advocate and lobby for the interests of the industry within and outside Nigeria
Ewedemi: That is perhaps one of our strongest arms because we are able to have the Government Corporations listen to us. We are presently working on a bill with some members of the Federal House of Representatives to move this industry further.

MUSIC AUTHENTICITY

LADYBRILLE.com: I find African musicians that create unique identities through the use of their native tongue juxtaposed with unique/African beats inspiring and authentic.How do we encourage African musicians to do more of this? I feel that the authenticity has a global appeal and frankly is where the money is, especially in the world music categories. Ewedemi: I must tell you that the best Nigerian Musicians are fusionist, artistes who have being able to mix local and foreign elements together. The underground advice is rap in your local dialect, infuse a traditional rhyme or do a hook in Pidgin-English. I must tell you we know what the people listen to now.

HOW DO WE REDUCE THE HIP-SLOPS?

LADYBRILLE.com:Today, everyone is a musician. You got folks going into studios, spitting a little "hip-hop" and then releasing it to the masses. A lot of it are hip-slops and lack appeal inter-continentally and globally. How do we educate people and let them know just because you kicked it in the studio does NOT make you a rapper/artist/musician?
Ewedemi: Having been on radio for twelve [12] years I understand this [problem] very much. The structure we intend to create will also include trainings and certifications to get people on the right part of their creative destinies.

MARKETING/SOCIAL MEDIA

LADYBRILLE.com: There is no doubt that social media is making a huge difference today in how music is marketed i.e. blogs, myspace, twitter, facebooks e.t.c. Do you see these social media replacing the roles of record labels in terms of being the ones that filter the "flops" and declare, the "hits?" Ewedemi: I must say that the social media is bringing people together and generating discussions around the industry. In Africa it takes you over two hours to download a song from the internet . . . and 90% of the populations can not afford to stay that long on the internet to download a song. We still rely on radio and TV to determine hits.

LADYBRILLE.com: Thank you Wale Ewedemi and congrats on your award and also having the foresight to build a Music Industry Association. Ewedemi: Anytime . . . thanks for caring enough to want to know the issues from an insider.

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Jay-Z & Mary J. Keep it Real About Fashion & Music Biz

This clip with Jay-Z, looking like a million bucks, and Mary J. Blige chatting with Tavis Smiley about the business of music and fashion, ties in neatly with our marathon on our April Africa Music issue. Be sure to check out what Africa's music insider Wale Ewedemi has to say about the business of music in Africa and of course continue to stay tuned for more exciting coverage of the best talents coming out fo AFRIKA!

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Africa's Music Industry Issues

All music and no business is simply not our forte at LADYBRILLE.com. Musicians like fashion designers et al "gotta eat!" Therefore, we are not only interested in enjoying and grooving to their songs, we also want to know how the musicians we cherish, some of whom we have been featuring all month long, in our April Africa Music Issue, can get paid what is owed them for their work product.

In this two part interview, with the help of music industry insider, Wale Ewedemi, we shed light on the business of music in Africa. Part I covers the current state of Africa’s music industry and its intellectual property rights [IP]. Part II explores technology, distribution, advocacy, infrastructure, music authenticity and social media.
Briefly, Wale Ewedemi commonly known as BIG W has over [twelve] years experience in radio. A graduate of the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Ewedemi has practiced journalism, both radio and print, in Ghana and Nigeria. He recently resigned as General Manager of the very popular 96.9 Cool FM Station, in the state of Abuja which is the capital of Nigeria, to pursue his newly formed company, M54 Entertainment. While at 96.9 Cool FM, and in the last four years of his radio career, Ewedemi discovered over a hundred [100] music talents, while presenting the most popular radio show on the station “Good Morning Nigeria.” In addition, Ewedemi has served as a judge for numerous national music talent searches including: the MTV Base Search for a music presenter in Nigeria, the Rhythm Council [which has discovered the biggest artists in Nigeria] and for three years, he has also served as Chief Judge for “The Broadcaster.”

Last year, Ewedemi did what most said was “impossible.” He produced the first ever Nigerian International Music Summit in Abuja [the capital of Nigeria] under the umbrella of another of his newly formed organization-- the Music Industry Association of Nigeria [MIAN]. For his work, he received numerous awards including a United Nations recognized “Youth Peace Ambassador.” Ewedemi strongly believes African musicians need to be equipped to make good music with proper training, exposure, mentorship and a sense of belonging. Since its inception, MIAN has actively enlisted the help of experts across the globe and intercontinentally for seminars and workshops to empower its mostly musician member base. Ewedemi was recently awarded the 2008 British Council International Young Music Entrepreneur of the Year Award. He will represent Nigeria at the global event where an international winner will be chosen.

STATE OF AFRICA’S MUSIC INDUSTRY
LADYBRILLE.com: Wale, thanks for agreeing to this interview. Let's get right into it. What is the current state of Africa's music industry? Ewedemi: Africa needs to be looked at contextually. I mean let’s look at industries and professions generally in Africa; that will give you an idea of the music industry that has not reached any considerable appreciation levels within African governments. The music industry in Africa is filled with talents and new vibes yet, it is under funded and under utilized. Like all industries, they are not protected. The pirates own the record labels, they sign you up and still pirate your work, depending on how profitable you get.

There are no independent companies to determine sales by the marketing companies. You rely on their handwritten books. No royalties are paid by TV and radio stations for your works . . . intellectual property rights are constantly flawed; and while a government organization is in place to curb this, you wonder what they are doing?

LADYBRILLE.com: On the radio station point, since you also worked in radio for so long, can you tell us whether your newly formed Music Industry Association plans to address the use of copyrighted works of artists' without pay?
Ewedemi: That is major on our agenda. The Broadcasting Organization of Nigeria has taken the “collecting societies” to court for lack of proper documentation to claim funds from them. They are playing legal cards and stalling for as long as they can. The Music Industry Association intends to get the national assembly to look at this situation critically and get the case out of court to an arbitration panel. In the meantime, we might need to ban the stations from playing our songs till they start paying.

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS

LADYBRILLE.com: What is the current compensation scheme for artists, record labels and music publishers in Nigeria/Africa? How much cut/royalty fees do they get?
Ewedemi:[Currently], in Nigeria [for example], nobody pays royalties. [Major] artists get signed on as brand ambassadors sometimes and they get paid for that, but royalties, none at all.

LADYBRILLE.com: That is tough! Out of curiosity, does Nigeria have retail outlets like Tower Records in America?
Ewedemi: [Yes.] The biggest we have is Nu Metro, a South African franchise in Nigeria. They are not effective because pirates sell the CDs at 35% off the shelf price, so everybody buys on the streets.

LADYBRILLE.com: Speaking of the rampant piracy, do you agree with the position by many that if an artist makes good music, the people will buy rather than pirate so that piracy is [the] result of artists not delivering on what is promised. i.e. only one good song in the whole album?
Ewedemi: That has changed. Our artists [referring to Nigerian artists] are fantastic now. Artists like Asa, 9ice, 2Face, P-Square, Rugged man, Ty Bello e.t.c. You actually buy the album and feel good about the songs. In the past, people just looked for excuses not to make them face the actual problems. Now that the industry has developed, the problems are getting worse. The pirates fixed the prices, at the expense of the artists and the labels, and because they own the distribution chain we are stuck. Record labels are becoming obsolete because an artist can go directly to the marketer and get a contract for himself. Why share it with a record label? So the labels have to discover fresh artists and get them to sign killing contracts, 20 -30years.

LADYBRILLE.com: 20-30 years? Wow!

LADYBRILLE.com: Wale, we talk a lot about intellectual property rights but it usually comes through the lens and framework of Western laws and industries.How does Africa create music IP rights specific to its needs, [to deal with issues like a 20-30 year contract]?
Ewedemi: Where we are now, the radio and TV stations do not even pay royalties much less dj’s e.t.c. Music is universal. The Western laws actually guide us here.

LADYBRILLE.com: Within the Western framework, the current reality and structure of IP laws is that record labels and music publishers make the big monies. How do you respond to those who say advocating for copyright laws benefits everyone but the artist?
Ewedemi: I believe in structure. I believe in planning. Without the big wigs, with the big names, the creative economy will be docile. So they are needed maybe the laws have to be regularly overhauled to make everybody happy.

TO BE CONTINUED . . .

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