Big name artistes in closely-guarded meet
● Vee Mampeezy, Franco, Mogwe declined to shed light
With local entertainment promoters having met and discussed how best government could ease restrictions and allow the events sector to reopen, prominent musicians followed suit days later through a gathering whose contents remain a closely guarded secret.
Botswana’s big and influential artists amongst them,Vee Mampeezy, Franco, Latimmy and Kabelo Mogwe of Culture Spears just to name but a few posted a picture of their meeting on Facebook but did not reveal what the meeting was about.
“After a serious meeting with my brothers, taking Botswana music to another, watch the space,” read Vee Mampeezy’s post on social media.
Contacted by Arts & Culture, Mogwe preferred to remain mum, saying Franco (Frank Lesokwane) was the one in the position to comment. However, efforts to get a comment from the Ke lela le lona legendary singer and Vee Mampeezy hit a walls as both of their phones rang unanswered.
Whether the meeting was about their next musical project or just top musicians sharing COVID-19 tales, people on social media reacted differently to the incident. Fans of the man of the moment, ATI asked why the ‘president’ as they call him was not invited to the meeting.
Others claimed it was not right to host the meeting without female artists while some felt that upcoming and notso-popular artists should have been invited as well.
During a recent entertainment promoters’ meeting held at Notwane Club in Gaborone, LaTimmy who was attendance again, called for unity in the industry.
He even complained that some big names did not attend the meeting. Latimmy also said he wished for comprehensive unity between both promoters and musicians, legendary and upcoming or otherwise.
Whether Vee Mampeezy and co’s meeting was about reopening the industry as well, issues of the creative industry not being a united force come from long way back and it is not about to change because of COVID-19.
What is supposed to be the only credible union that can organise such kinds of meetings, Botswana Musicians Union (BOMU) has been awfully quiet and basically defunct.
ATI on the other side has been on a solo mission that only garnered him support from the industry players when he was arrested last week.
Botswana Entertainment Promoters Association (BEPA) has been described as poor in terms of communication by one of its own being promoter Godwin “Exotic Exoxo” Sebina last week.
Two weeks back Thapelo ‘Fish’ Pabalinga of GIMC revealed on social media that he had met with the MYSC Assistant Minister Billy to discuss the current situation regarding public events. That was right after ATI shunned a scheduled meeting with MYSC’s Tumiso Rakgare.
Observers opined that it appears as if in the entertainment industry everyone is pulling away only to run their solo marathons on the sidelines.
Now it takes everyone back to the issue that the long anticipated Arts Council should have been in place at this time to address such matters. It remains to be seen who will host their meeting next.