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| Entertainment |
| Nkasa conquers all |
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by
Alexander Newa, 12 September 2003
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14:41:00
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Musician Joseph Nkasa’s new album Tigwirane Manja is not only the hottest selling album on the market but it is also the favourite among a lot of people in bottlestores, homes, at parties, minibuses — virtually everywhere. It’s Nkasa, Nkasa, Nkasa!
The popularity of the album is overwhelming and its first sales figures have surpassed any other album ever released by a Malawian artist.
By Wednesday this week, Tigwirane Manja had sold 120,000 copies, according to distributors and marketers Afri Music, a subsidiary of O.G. Issa. Of these, 30,000 were sold on the release day on July 28, the highest figure ever sold of a local album on a single release day.
“It was a scramble for Tigwirane Manja. People had to queue like they wanted to buy maize at an Admarc depot,” said an Afri Music official who felt it was not necessary to take his name.
Meanwhile, Afri Music say they will order more copies of the album from the artist which will hit the market this week.
This is Nkasa’s seventh album and it comes hot on the heels of Wayenda Wapenga, another chart-bursting collection of proverbial rhetoric that sold a staggering 175,000 copies — making it the highest selling album last year beating Mlaka Maliro’s Moloto on second position.
Not many people know about the other five albums that Nkasa has produced. But the artist himself admits that they were flops. However, he did not give up and now he is the demanded artist at every party.
According to Afri Music, the second hot-selling album in Malawi at the moment after Tigwiriane Manja also happens to be Nkasa’s Wayenda Wapenga.
It is Nkasa’s imprint of riddle-laden lyrics, a groaning bass, a vibrating trumpet and a voice of an oppressed person so distinct to the man himself that have pulled everyone to the speakers — young or old.
And such is how powerful the former gospel artist is that even big time musicians in the country are afraid to release their much-touted albums this time around because they know they cannot match Nkasa.
The musician is likely to pull more souls with his plans to produce a video for the hit Mphwayi Ndi Tsoka from next week which will be shot by Kings Multimedia, according to Afri Music.
With only three months remaining to the 2003 MBC Entertainer of Entertainers Awards, Nkasa is poised to grab the Musician of the Year award although he may face still competition from albums which will be released this month and next.
But as of now it’s nobody but Nkasa.
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