In a quest to unearth hidden talent, musician Farai Chazima has rolled out a project to identify new talent in singing, dance, acting and poetry.
The project is open to participants aged between 16 and 30 who will participate in auditions.
Thereafter, 140 participants will be selected to undergo capacity building training based on their areas of interest.
The K9.9 million project is being implemented under the Farai Chazima Foundation with funding from Copyright Society of Malawi (Cosoma) Copyright Fund.
them. | Courtesy of Chazima
Speaking in an interview yesterday, Chazima said the project will target people whose potential is hindered by things such as resources and social dispositions.
“Once we identify them, we will work with them until when we feel they possess the capacity to generate income using their talents. The idea is to ensure that players in the creative space are self-sufficient economically,” she said.
The capacity building trainings will cover areas such as stage work, mindset change and voice production.
Project beneficiaries will also be helped to produce their own creations such as composing songs, theatre productions, poems and have dancers feature in music video production, she said.
Chazima said: “We should move from looking at arts just as a pastime, but an industry that can contribute
in job creation. The skills they will be equipped with will make them not just competitive in the local industry but also on the international market.”
The foundation’s manager Kelvin Chizauni said though the participants will undergo auditions, their arrangement will not be structured as a competition, but a screening exercise to allow the judges appreciate the raw talents.
He said: “We will give assistance to the individuals based on their level of development talent wise. Some may need a whole polishing up while others may require just a little grooming.
“We have specialists from different fields who will lead the trainings and we will also benefit from partnerships that we have in place with
institutions such as Music Crossroads Malawi.”
Farai Chazima Foundation recently benefitted from the Copyright Fund under its fifth call where K161 million was distributed to 17 creative projects.
Copyright Fund manager Blessings Botha said they are impressed by the nature of the projects that artists are implementing.
He said: “We have seen unique projects being undertaken. We have one by Lukia Chikopa which incorporated people with disabilities into arts and the Kweza Arts by Q Malewezi.
“Considering the gains we have made, that is why in the sixth call we have emphasized on exporting talent to penetrate the international market.”
