Rooftop Promotions Launches Wene Music Awards

Rooftop Promotions on Thursday announced the launch of the Wene Music Awards at a press conference in Harare.

Board Director Ray Mawerera said the awards were necessitated by the growth of the Zimbabwe music sector and that a sector specific award was long overdue.

Barriers have been broken, new styles have emerged and our traditional way of doing things has been challenged… What has been happening can only be described as phenomenal.

He made reference to genres such as hip hop and dancehall.

He said the awards are not only acknowledging our vast talent across various genres, across the length and breath of the country but to urge artists on and encouraging an improvement in standards.

Adjudicators who will be introduced at a press conference in a few weeks will look for artists from the length and breath of country. This was said to be done to make sure that Zimbabwean music was properly celebrated.

Wene is a project that took two years to make.

Rooftop Promotions has a history of involvement in awards after their work as event organisers in the Zimbabwe Music Awards.

Also present at the presser was Rooftop Promotions Executive Director, Daves Guzha and National Arts Council Deputy Director Nicholas Moyo.

Moyo in giving the awards his stamp of approval said that different awards people have approached his office with ideas for awards. In 2012 there were six different people who approached the Arts Council and out of those Wene was the only one who had brought their dream to life.

The first edition will take place on 29th October 2014 at a venue to be advised.

By the way, Wene means Ours.

With the flack that the various awards in this country are getting, Wene has its work cut out for it to satisfy a disillusioned public.