Thursday, March 28, 2024

Interview with upcoming singer Ndana

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New to the scene Ndana is young, vibrant and talented. He honed his craft singing in various shows(he moved alot when he was younger) before putting his voice to work in various Choirs in and around Johannesburg. Ndana would have recorded earlier except for his academic obligations at the world Top 40 Monash University a private Australian University in Ruimsig in the west of johannesburg. He was groomed on 70’s, 80’s and 90’s RnB, soul and pop, as well as the African pioneering sounds of brenda Fassie, Lucky Dube, Kanda BongoMan, Ringo, Salif Keita and Angelique Kidjoe. He is keen to be found genre-less as he believes music is art…and expression can not be constricted to just one form of outlet as art often conveys emotion. His sound is RnB, Soul, Jazz, House, Afro-Pop and Reggea yielding undertones of classical music and traditional African Music among other things. The boy is a plethora of sensations with his multi-textural voice that caresses in some offerings while bulldozing through certain other offerings and delivering all the sensations in between. New to the Music scene, his journey promises to be at the very least interesting. you’re invited to come along for the ride
KAPA187: Who is Ndana?

NDANA: I’m a mess! A HUGE HOT mess!(smiling) I’m a melting pot of a whole buncha flavours!! All of them!(laughing) Seriously! I’m what South Africans term a motswako that is a Tswana word for(mix). I’m many things all of which are up for debate according to my friends but one thing for certain is I am a dreamer….and a bit of a ladies man (dusting dirt off shoulder). I just find it easier to relate to women. I find that their conversations are often so real. When women speak it’s often a result of an inside force. And I am all about those inside forces. Pain, love, pleasure, joy, sorrow, jealousy…it all intrigues me and I have found no force greater than love in my years and no greater story than one that’s founded on the inside forces….butterflies and all.

KAPA187: You did some shows and sang in a choir when you were starting up. When was the moment that made you decide that music is something you want to pursue seriously?
NDANA: Honestly? I only decided to pursue making music for the music making experience. For years I’ve been miserable stifled by societal expectations and such. Zambia is not exactly a breeding ground for individualism, if anything Zambian people can often be very homogenous and any difference from the generic crop is presumed to be awkward or queer and one might easily get branded a rebel or pompous and other such fea. Truth of the matter is I always felt a little different, special even….and hiding it was killing my spirit. But then I woke up one day and thought to myself, “What if I tried being me today!?” That day I wrote like songs and I knew I had a gift. ? God made me awesome and I embrace that. I rock. And if anyone’s spirit was ever crushed and your creativity murdered by poison tip tongues? You rock! If you believe me and believe in you, do something about it! I believe Zambia would have been a greater country if we all embraced what was inherently within us to pursue. Each one. Imagin if Christiano Ronaldo never played soccer? Or if tiger Woods never learned to love golf? Or if Lance armstr….haha!! Nevermind!! I’m sorry that was right there!!! I had to!!
KAPA187: Has your family always been supportive of your talent?
NDANA: (Smiles Coyly) My folks are slowly warming to the idea the more they hear other people say how good they believe I am. My fellow munchkins and not so little munchkins have in deed supported me a 100% while tossing in quip or two at my expense. But I love it. They Love me and I love them back, no one but God is above my family in priority.
KAPA187: Who are some of the Zambian artists that inspire you?
NDANA: Zonefam and Lotahouse would certainly be in there. I am a huge fan of quality everything! And that becomes my metric of measure. By that metric I’m inspired by Maureen Lilanda for both the quality of her work and the quality of her spirit. She amazes me with her humility and ability to make one feel no less than another. Though I could be envious and I use the term loosely, of the opportunities that some of the better established musicians have had and have in my opinion not been able to parlay into something bigger. I would love to be brand ambassador for a company I believe in. (chuckling heartily) Coperates can consider that an open invite! Haha! I laugh but I’m serious though.

KAPA187: What is it that separates you from other upcoming singers?

NDANA: I’m bold. I don’t know who is included in the envelope of upcoming singers. So I can’t say why I one up them but I will say what I possess that they might not. I have charm, an easy to get along with kinda fella. Some may think I’m tooting my own horn here but frankly? I’m just realistic about my level of self-awareness, I much prefer myself through the eyes of others than through the lens or a mirror. Being easy on the eye is one thing but being easy on a spirit is a whole other thing.
KAPA187: Sometimes people can be very critical about upcoming singers, how do you deal with criticism?

NDANA: I have had no backlash or critical negative analysis about any of my work so far which is both alarming and in the same breathe welcome, though I am one to relish the honest truth with no punches pulled. Critics sometimes have no leg to stand on with some arguments rendered moot by their reasoning or lack thereof. I am wary what I lend my ears to. Cause I believe negative energy acts as a vector force on positive energy and I am really fond of positive energy cause it allows you to nurture dreams, thoughts and plans, as the quote goes “as a man thinks, so he is.” I subscribe to that text entirely!
KAPA187: Your songs have an RnB/ dance feel to them . What inspires your style of music .

NDANA: Honestly, any song I ever loved lends to my creative process. It is a far cry from plagiarism though. I believe music helps form a person through its message. If a person accepts the music and its message it becomes a part of that person. So when I create dig deep and my inside and a word of God collide to bring force a brand new thing.

KAPA187: If you were given 3 wishes what would they be and why?

NDANA: 1.I’d wish I was ready for love when I had it. Cause right now I feel like I let the one get away, youth is a state of continuous stupidity with a flash of genius. Genius was loving her and stupidity took over.
2. I wish the advances in technology didn’t advance so far as to threaten our social interaction with our loved ones
3. I’d wish everyone knew that the pursuit of happiness we are all on is nothing if you have not family, love, true friends and a God

KAPA187: You are still young; do you see yourself still doing music in 10 years?
NDANA: I was born doing music, I may die doing music. But music would have to pay its dues to me if it would hope I am still a slave to it years from now. It ought to enable my family travel the world, build memories and build a bank balance size that may inspire me to pull some philanthropic pursuit of the Patrice Motsepe persuasion. Financial freedom has an allure for me.

KAPA187: Any last words to your fans in Zambia and all over the world?

NDANA: I just want to touch your hearts and sing you story to another you who doesn’t have the answers that you already found. I want to make you happy and I may make you sad but overall I want the goodtimes to outweigh the bad…life is a game but I believe we’re all on the same side so I’ll share who I am with you…cause I don’t wanna be strangers.So basically, meet me in my music.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5mdv6B-eaKw

By Kapa187

16 COMMENTS

  1. Ndana it was a great pleasure to have met u while u were studing at Monash. I remember u with a smile on ur face each time I saw u. I just wana wish u every thing of the best with ur music and future. Always love u

  2. What’s the meaning of top 40 thing I’ve never head of this college in my life. I hate these private colleges most of the guys who go their are frustrated chaps who couldn’t be accepted at unza and to make it up they just go into modelling and singing. Chawama better to listen to Mk 2 or Pilato mwee

  3. people should just appreciate you Ndana , for me you sunged well. You know what? it needs someone to understand music, then you can be appreciated. haha

  4. Ndana dnt listen to wat em haters say,people will alwaz criticise u,sme will say u aint worth it,others will say u r a copy cat. But one thing I know about you is you give your best in all. People tok abt judging students from private uni’s, it shows a lack of matureness coz in life their bitter abt who theu are,Ndana u flying high on the charts, nd ima support u all the way.

  5. Go Ndana! Keep believing and dreaming. You have mad talent, and don’t mind the haters. Octopus bwalya…u’ve never heard of Monash University?! Do u live under a rock? No wonder your views are so shallow, I bet u never even went to a simple uni like unza if u think pilato has talent. Dull! PS, nobody is even trying to get into Unza these days,coz that’s where bright young talent goes to die!

  6. The guy is right when he talks about Zam bians’ homogeneity. When one guy sings trash with a simple computer program they all join in and sing trash. When one guy becomes born again they all join in. My uncle was given a so called christian name because all the neighbours had a Christian name so said his mother. What happpens when one guy enjoys farting? When people don’t want to be individuals nobody shines!

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