Late in the afternoon the October skies opened up and there was a heavy downpour in the City, but Saturday’s Unplugged Zimbabwe was worth sloshing through a muddy field to see.
Nothing in the changing weather patterns could diminish the enthusiasm of people to have a good time and enjoy performances from Adiona, Holy Ten, King 98, Leo Magozz, ExQ and South African artist Costa Tich.
Presented by Coca-Cola, this edition was a perfect platform for hip-hop to affirm the genre’s dominance as they took turns to entertain the crowd at Greendale Sports Clubs.
Some of the genre’s most recognisable names such as Holy Ten, Leo Magozz, King 98 and a surprise appearance by M-Killer gave a red-hot performance.
The mood was bright during Leo Magozz’ set. He kicked things off with tracks from his recently released EP, ‘Drill Lives Matter.’
For those who thought that Leo was a one-trick pony artist having given the country the anthem song ‘Fire Emoji,’ the boy has a solid body of work and it was unsurprising that the crowd was singing along to his new songs.
And of course, he got to perform the hit song ‘Fire emoji’ and there were wild screams!
“The response from people was massive, it was beautiful, I loved the engagement to my new songs,” Leo Magozz told Zimbuzz soon after his Unplugged Zimbabwe performance.
“People will always listen to good music, so I think I have tried to give that to them.”
Soon after came the guy who gave us the big collaborations and has dared to break new ground, nothing seem to faze or stop him – King 98.
He is currently exploring his artistic prowess and has had a dance with both hip hop, afro beats and Amapiano.
King 98’s set was evident of a well-travelled artist who has really invested in his art.
It was complete with DJing, record scratching and b-boys wearing all white and chains.
That he was one of the most popular acts on Saturday is a no-brainer, this is his kind of crowd and he has been here before, but even armed with a such experience he brought his best game and energy onto the Unplugged stage.
We managed to have a chat with him just before he could catch his breath soon after his performance.
“We are trying to change the strategy, the vision has always been global, I lost my dad and that was his vision as well,” said King 98.
“My switching genres (to amapiano) just goes to show how talented I am as an artist, I wish you guys could see me in the studio,” he said with a giggle as he tried to catch a breath.
When Holy Ten finally went on stage, the appetite in fans was that of hounds – screams, wild cheers and whistles ate up every other sound in the grounds.
Probably hip-hop’s MVP at the moment.
His performance was skilful and dynamic befitting of a rapper who has delivered most of 2021-22 powerful releases.
For Holy Ten it’s not just a catalogue of hit songs but how he kept up the same level of energy and enthusiasm for the entirety of his set.
He bounced across the stage with an infectious grin as he hyped up the crowd, jumping up and down.
Towards the end he called up his beau Kimberly to join him for a performance of their collaboration ‘Too Scared’ but a shy Kim only performed momentarily, greeted the crowds and left the stage.
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