The NACZ March 2025 Newsletter Issue 7
Point Black is pleased to present the March 2025 edition of the National Arts Council of Zimbabwe newsletter. The amazing team at the NACZ prepared this newsletter, which Point Black edited and designed.
This month’s edition also includes an informative segment on how artists can leverage YouTube to grow their audiences and revenue
Read and download the new edition below:
Welcome Remarks
National Arts Council of Zimbabwe Director Mr Napoleon Nyanhi
I am delighted to reflect on the remarkable progress we have made as a sector in the last month and to share our vision for the year ahead. The team had all hands on deck, putting together one of the best NAMA Editions in history since its inception. The event is the National Arts Council of Zimbabwe’s flagship program, and we are proud of what it has become. The month of March has been a hive of activity as we set the tone for the whole year. A lot of planning is happening for our annual programs though the results will be evident in the months to come. The groundwork for Culture Month has already started also for the partnership programs with Chibuku (Neshamwari and Road to fame). This year is going to be interesting.
As we embark on this exciting journey, I urge all stakeholders to join hands and work together to realize the full potential of the arts sector. Let us continue to celebrate our diversity, tell our stories, and use art as a tool for positive change.
Thank you to everyone who has supported the National Arts Council and the creative sector. Your dedication and passion are the driving forces behind our success. Together, we can make 2025 a landmark year for the arts in Zimbabwe.
THE NATIONAL ART MERIT AWARDS RECAP
The 23rd edition of NAMA was held at Harare Hippodrome on Saturday 1 March. This was characterized by sterling performances, an elegant red carpet and good attendance with representation from the government and the Private sector. The Honourable Minister of Sport, Recreation, Arts and Culture, Dr Kirsty Coventry delivered a virtual address, and she was represented at the event by the Acting Minister, Honourable Professor Paul Mavima. Also In attendance were the Minister of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services, Honorables Jenfan Muswere, Harare Mayor, His worship Councilor Jacob Mafume, and Ambassador Jobst von Kirchmann from the European Union, among other important guests. The curtains were brought down by an outstanding performance from Jah Prayzah. We consider that the adjudicators did a great job this year as most people were happy with the winners. Skhanyiso Ngwenya made history by becoming the youngest artist to win at NAMA. He walked away as the Outstanding Actor at the NAMA23rd Edition.
NAMA Categories & Winners
Outstanding Female Musician - Tamy Moyo
Outstanding Male - Musician Master H
Outstanding Breakthrough Musician - Chillmaster
Outstanding Music Group - The Unveiled
Outstanding Song - Killer T (Kana Ndanyura')
Outstanding Album - Voltz JT (NOP Makoni)
Outstanding Music Video - Nhemamusasa' by Bagga Directed by Leoy V
People's Choice Award - Winky D
Outstanding Artist in the Diaspora - Masimba Hwati (Visual Artist)
Outstanding Female Dancer - Celine Madziva
Outstanding Male Dancer - Tichaona "Hero" Chikara
Outstanding Dance Group/Production - Khaya Arts Productions
Outstanding Choreographer - Future Dube
Outstanding Male Visual Artist - Moffat Takadiwa
Outstanding Female Visual Artist - Portia Zvavahera
Outstanding Upcoming Visual Artist - Kundai Nathan
Outstanding Exhibition - 6th Venice Biennale
Outstanding Poet - Kudakwashe Rice
Outstanding Social Media Skits - Panashe Gurende aka Moojaya
Outstanding Stand-Up Comedian - Mukudzei Majoni aka King Kandoro
Outstanding Actress - Caroline Mashingaidze Zimbizi
Outstanding Actor - Michael Kudakwashe
Outstanding Theatrical Production - The Aftermath
Outstanding Director - Haywire by Everson Ndlovu
Outstanding Playwright - Promise by Leonard Matsa
Outstanding First Published Work - Zagamo the war within by Ray Mawerera
Outstanding Children's Book - Chimbira nedzimwe ngano by Primrose Dzenga
Outstanding Fiction Book - Weeping Tomato by Samantha Rumbidzai Vazhure
Outstanding Non-Fiction Book - Entrepreneurial Success: Insights on Growing Business in a Fluid Economy by Divine
Outstanding Screen Production (Television) - The DNA Show by Tinashe Mugabe
Outstanding Screen Production (Short film) - Dollar by Tawanda Vombo
Outstanding Screen Production (Full Length film) - Nhoroondo by Vusa Hlatswayo
Promoter of the Year - Event Hulks
Arts Service Award - Prince Edward School
Arts Personality Award - Partson Chimbodza (Chipas Promotions)
Lifetime Achievement Award - Philip Svosve
NAMA 23RD EDITION ADJUDICATOR`S RECEPTION
Yahya Goodvibes
National Arts Council of Zimbabwe in partnership with Jacaranda Culture Media Corporation (JCMC) hosted an adjudicators reception ceremony at the Jacaranda Culture and Media Centre in Belgravia on 14 March 2025 where the adjudicators received their certificates as part of recognizing their work dedicated towards NAMA. NACZ Executive Director, Mr Napoleon Nyanhi commended the adjudicators for their dedication and hard work as this year’s winners were well received by the arts fraternity.
NAMA Hosts Charlene Mangweni Furusa & Nabeela Jogee
Chitungwiza Arts Centre Awards
CHITUNGWIZA ARTS CENTRE
The Celestial Chorus Soirée held at HICC on the 31st of December was the perfect event to sign out of the eventful 2024. The event hosted by the Bridging Gaps Foundation ticked all the boxes that resemble a well-organised musical production. It featured a 100-piece symphony and had a total of 182 participating artists from Zimbabwe, South Africa and the USA making it one of the biggest investments into the arts in 2024. Guests were treated to a memorable experience, marked by flawless timing, exceptional performances and an atmosphere of great excitement.It was indeed another testimony that with good investment, Zimbabwean art can be a powerful force in the region and beyond.
Mrs B. Gotore, Mr W. Ndinde and Artists from Chitungwiza Arts Centre
THE CREATIVE ECONOMY ON STAR FM
Dancer - Selemani Mponchi aka MaJuice
National Arts Council of Zimbabwe is partnering with Star FM for a weekly radio show on arts. The objective of the show is to encourage aspiring artists while equipping the already practicing with the arsenal to transform what others call a passion into a viable business entity. On The Creative Economy this month we had Digital Expert and Founder of Point Black, Mr Phil Chard who was talking about Digital Distribution of Art. Listeners were equipped with knowledge on how to register with online distributors for music and earn from monetizing social media pages.
Digital Expert - Phil Chard
On the show this month was renowed choreographer who works at Alick Macheso’s Ochestra Mberikwazvo band. Selemani Mponchi, also known as MaJuice is also running a dance academy and training young people on how to become a professional dancer. Christian Hip Hop artist and founder of House of Arts Association, Mr Capser Chigama also shared his journey of how he has grown to become an established artists securing bookings internationally and forging partnerships that allows him to give back to upcoming artists in his community. Tune to the Creative Economy every Wednesday from 11.40-12pm and learn more about art as a thriving business in Zimbabwe.
MAT SOUTH CELEBRATES WORLD POETRY DAY
The Gwanda community celebrated World Poetry Day and World Theatre Day at Chitaudze Community hall. The day was filled with scintillating performances from local groups. NACZ Provincial Arts Manager, Percy Vela said he was impressed by the passion for poetry and theatre displayed on that day.
Theatrical Poetry Performance
INTANGIBLE CULTURAL HERITAGE PRESERVATION AWARENESS PROJECT LAUNCHED IN MASHONALAND EAST
NACZ Mash East Provincial Arts Manager, Chido Erengwi at the ICH Awareness launch
Mashonaland East Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution, Honourable Advocate Itayi Ndudzo, joined forces with Deputy Minister of Sport, Recreation, Arts and Culture, Honourable Emily Jesaya, to launch a groundbreaking initiative promoting the importance of UNESCO’s 2003 Convention of Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage. This culturally significant event unfolded at LC Nechombo Culture Village in Makaha on 25 March 2025.
Philip Kusasa in Spain
PHILIP KUSASA IN SPAIN
Ndau Festival of Arts (NDAFA) founder and director, Mr Philip Kusasa attended a weeklong workshop for Festival directors in Spain. The trip was made possible by a grant courtesy of the Culture Fund of Zimbabwe Trust. NDAFA is a community festival aimed at promoting the Ndau language and Culture. It is held annually at Payiapo Arts Centre in Chipinge.
Culture Month 2025 Organizing Committee in Masvingo
CULTURE MONTH 2025
NACZ has declared May a month of celebrating Zimbabwe’s cultural diversity. This was an extension of World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development Celebrated on the 21st of May. In Zimbabwe we host a series of provincial events and a national celebration. The organizing team for this year’s event was in Masvingo province, which is the host for this year’s national celebrations. A vibrant committee with various government departments is now running with the plans for a memorable celebration of our diverse cultures.
BRITISH COUNCIL HOSTS THE CREATIVE ECONOMY WEEK
The Creative Economy Week 2025 event ran from March 5 to 9 bringing together key stakeholders, artists, and industry leaders. This year’s events focused on exploring and supporting the creative industries in Africa. It featured panel discussions, workshops, and roundtable sessions aimed at providing insights into the creative economy and facilitating collaboration between creative professionals, policymakers, and the private sector. The NACZ Executive Director, Mr Napoleon Nyanhi and Bulawayo Provincial Arts Manager, Cleopatra Dube, were some of the Key panellists.
Creative Economy Week Byo Panelists & Flyer
HERO’S WELCOME FOR DR KIRSTY COVENTRY
The newly elected IOC President and former Minister of Sport, Recreation, Arts and Culture, Dr. Kirsty Coventry came home to a hero’s welcome when she landed at RGM International Airport on Sunday 23 March. The NACZ organised for artists that included Hwamanda Dance Troupe, ZMC Brass Band, Dapi the Poet , Friends of The warriors. Renowned Poet, Albert Nyathi scooped the limelight with a tailor made poem that praised the golden girl for her outstanding achievements.
Albert Nyathi welcoming Dr.Kirsty Coventry with a poem
Music Industry Education
This month as part of the Artist Accelerator programme we will be sharing information about how creatives and all artists in Zimbabwe can use and understand Youtube’s best practices
YOUTUBE
YouTube is without question the biggest streaming service on the planet, the second largest search engine in the world, and the biggest streaming platform in Zimbabwe. In conjunction with all the work you are doing to gain visibility on social media and other streaming platforms, any artist trying to reach the masses and gain a large audience needs to understand how to leverage YouTube effectively.
The first question we are often asked is “Can I make money on YouTube?” Our answer is often “Yes, but it's less than you think.” Without getting too much into the weeds of marketing speak, YouTube can earn you revenue but unless you have a massive subscriber base who fall into demographics that advertisers pay a lot to reach, you are not going to be buying a Bentley anytime soon.However what YouTube can and will do is provide a secure level of passive income that should cover the costs of investing in video content and provide you with money to invest back into your craft or just cover living expenses. It will also give you another route to sell merchandise, tickets and other items that your fans would love to pay for. It's only when you add YouTube revenue to all the other means of income that you can exploit that you can start to really see substantial revenue coming in throughout the year.
Firstly, you need to speak to your distributor about activating monetisation for your YouTube channel and also allowing them to collect revenue not only from your channel but also whenever some over-eager fan or dubious blogger uploads your music without your permission. Your Distributor will also whitelist your channel so you can freely upload your own music to the channel without it getting muted or even worse, getting a copyright strike against your channel. Though it is important that you understand how to do these things yourself, this particular process is best done in conjunction with your distributor. You can however monetise your channel yourself but this is a much lengthier process. You can head to YouTube’s Creator Academy for more information on this process.
If you are working with a distributor that offers label services they may have someone on staff who can help you optimise your YouTube page. If not, here are things you need to do when creating your channel and uploading videos.
How Does Content ID Work?
To put it simply, Content ID is like the Shazam of YouTube. Each unique song has its own digital fingerprint that is catalogued by YouTube. If someone uploads a video that contains music that your Distributor has registered, YouTube will recognise it and notify the uploader that they cannot monetise this video. Youtube will then display ads against that video and then share the revenue from those ads with the copyright holder via the Distributor.
If you see an “Includes copyrighted content” notice on a video you’ve uploaded to your own channel, that means YouTube’s Content ID system has identified some element within the video that is being monetized by the copyright holder. Once your channel is monetised you will see these warnings on your channel when you upload your own music, so don't panic. If you see a red warning that states the video will be muted or that you cannot share it because the copyright holder has blocked this action, then you can panic a little bit and contact your Distributor ASAP.When setting up how you will handle Content ID disputes we would advise you to ensure you can monetise any video that contains your copyrighted work, and you/your distributor can track viewer data to get detailed analytics of where your song/s are gaining popularity. This will be helpful when you are planning a tour or want to approach promoters/festival bookers. Once you have done all this, encourage your fans to use your song in their videos. Find an upstart vlogger and offer to let them use your song in their video intros or even as a bed. This means the more views their videos get the more money you get.
DON’T BUY VIEWS
In a highly competitive environment many artists feel that buying views will get them noticed and be their ticket to stardom. Firstly it won’t. Secondly, professionals like myself can easily see when views are being bought. Thirdly, it does not earn you any money because YouTube can see it too. In the long run buying views will cause far more damage than any perceived upside. Also, the all powerful YouTube algorithm rewards you for watch time, aka engaged viewers, not views. You should focus on making content that keeps viewers engaged. That will keep the algorithm monster happy, and a happy monster means your video will start popping onto viewers recommended lists or even better, automated playlists!
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