Namadingo’s patience pays
Good people, less is more. This is the major lesson from the videos of Patience Namadingo, the youthful gospel musician who seems determined to do what the less talented fear to attempt.
The artist, whose acoustic performances in aid of children undergoing cancer treatment at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital recently wowed the country, personifies simplicity when it comes to the making of music videos.
Even on the famous charity tour, simplicity was the overarching theme. Then, we saw him touring numerous places where crowds were waiting to see him singing ‘Macheza’ and other hits with just a mic, a guitar and foot drum.
The man has read his scriptures well. In the Bible, Jesus Christ, whom Christians worship as the son of God and their savior, urged his apostles to always travel light if they want to go place, for theirs was a mission to preach the gospel not in the vicinity of Jerusalem, but to the ends of the world.
For lovers of efficiency and beautiful things, small is big—big enough to cater for everything that excess baggage is supposed to do in times of plenty.
On the newly released video, Dziko, Namadingo is not weighed down by the wayward zeal to please his friends, next of kin and passers-by by roping them into the motion picture.
Rather, the audiovisual production brings to the front a thin cast of talented minds who aptly translate what the musician was up to when he composed the hit from The All New Namadingo LP, launched in Lilongwe six months ago. This is the song in which he warns against false prophets who are bizarrely vying for riches, crowds, grandeur and other earthly glitters. In his singing, the very Jesus the detested prophets claim to serve with all worldly acquisition is a simple son of man who does not worry about money, votes and other trappings. He will not change even if the whole world rejected him.
The talk of false prophets usually brings to mind tales of the end of times.
According to Namadingo, dziko lili pamoto (the world is on fire). This is the thrust of the song that has won the hearts of many since the release of the video on Tuesday.
And his production team, led by Sukez and Peter Mazunda, aptly capture the theme as the artist, playing the guitar he loves most, agonisingly wallows in a valley of bonfires.
Ignore the glares that make the pictures less vivid, the nightly visuals strikingly portray a scene of hell fire which is at the heart of the grim side of Christian perceptions of Judgement Day when the sinful shall gnash their teeth.
As the flames leap into the air and slump to the ground, Namadingo and company clearly impose it on viewers that gone are the days bussed a whole village to make a music video.
Too many hands spoil the broth.
This seems to have been the cardinal rule when the youthful artist set out to make the famous video.
He did it to an appreciable level.
The astute artist’s measured vocals and inimitable mastery of the instruments, especially the guitar, easily sways lovers of good, soft, soothing music to listen to anything he sings.
His simple and straightforward videos make him a darling to behold, putting him head and shoulders above the rest of the singers and pretenders who seem to think video production is about pleasing their clans and giving unskilled hands a one-off bliss to appear on the silver screen.
Move on, time-wasters.
Going through the majority of Namadingo’s videos, which are freely available on YouTube, offers DIY lessons on everything to do when coming up with a music video for public consumption.
The artist, who took his time and shot the video with patience, will unveil his all-new LP at Comesa Hall in Blantyre on August 26.n
