KAZZ TO GRACE ZIM ACHIEVERS AWARDS:
“We have enormous respect for Kazz’s unique artistry and we believe that his performance at this year’s ceremony will be an exciting ZAA moment”
UNITED Kingdom-based Afropop singer Kazz, real name Farhaan Khan, has been named as one of the performing acts to grace the stage at the Zimbabwe Achievers Awards (ZAA) next month.
Kazz “Mr Boomslang” — is the first act at this year’s awards show scheduled to take place on May 7.
The awards will be hosted at the luxurious five-star Royal Garden Hotel in London’s affluent district of Kensington.
This year’s awards are sponsored by EcoCash diaspora, Chitoro and Steward bank.
The “She is Worth It” singer is expected to dazzle guests with some of his hit songs.
Kazz, one of the first recipients of a Zimbabwe Achievers gong at the inaugural ceremony in 2011 with brother Bkay, said it was an honour to be given the chance to perform at the prestigious event.
“I am both humbled and flattered to have been asked to perform at the awards. As an artiste who is really passionate about my music, it’s always rewarding to share what I love doing most and I am looking forward to performing for the nominees and all the guests who will be there,” he said.
Kazz stormed onto the international scene with sibling Bkay, and together they formed the duo Bkay and Kazz.
At the start of their music career, the duo set up their own production house called Prizm Inc where they recorded their earliest songs like “My Brother My Sister”, “Come Together” and the 2005 hit “Ndikati Hello”, a collaboration with Urban Grooves artiste Decibel.
The duo’s debut album, “In the Beginning”, went straight to the top of the charts, and driven by the success of the album, they decided it was time to explore the Western market and left Zimbabwe to set up base in the UK.
In 2007, Bkay and Kazz entered the second largest national talent show in the UK — “Live & Unsigned”.
After auditioning with 40 000 other acts, the boys waltzed through every stage of the contest and were crowned champions of the competition.
Riding on the success of the competition, Bkay and Kazz went on to release several successful albums such as “Boomslang”, “African Spirit” and “Jigsaw” in 2012.
Some of their biggest singles include “Amina Kadeya”, “7 Wonders” and “You Know It’s Right”.
Since going solo, Kazz has worked on several projects which include singles, “Sweet Gal”, “International African” alongside “JJC” and “Shaking Through The Night”.
In January, Kazz released his first single and music video of 2016; “She’s Worth It”, which reached number one, twice on Zambezi Magic, a South African Channel on DSTV.
In February, he released a Valentine’s single and video for Can We Make It Work and has just released his latest video for hot new track, “Thinking of You”.
“My aim is to remain persistent and consistent this year. An EP is in the pipeline but for now, enjoy the music,” said Kazz.
However, ZAA event coordinator Colline Watts, who oversees the recruitment of performers every year, said everything was going according to plan and rehearsals would start soon.
“We have enormous respect for Kazz’s unique artistry and we believe that his performance at this year’s ceremony will be an exciting ZAA moment.
“There is more to be revealed in the next few days but we are looking forward to the line-up of entertainers who will toast the success of this year’s group of award recipients, ranging from entrepreneurs to community champions and musicians,” he said.
The ZAA celebrates the achievements of the Zimbabwean community in the UK and continues to promote corporate social responsibility by supporting various charitable causes.
ZAA executive director Brian Nyabunze said the team was making steady progress with preparations for the event.
He also encouraged the public to buy their tickets early as options are becoming increasingly limited.
Tickets can be purchased directly from zimachievers.com.
“Tickets are moving fast and table bookings are working efficiently, thanks to the effective ticketing system we’ve put in place. The ticket deadline is April 29 so do not miss your chance to buy your ticket as no tickets will be sold after the deadline,” said Nyabunze.
Voting for this year’s awards is underway and profiles of the nominees are featured on zimachievers.com and detail the remarkable achievements of the short-listed candidates.