I write this because I love music. Malawian music.
If MUMA is yet to be in the news for wrong reasons; well, you can expect them to be soon. Have you seen their nominations, most of them? It is the same old jazz. The same thing of saying 'vote for the latest best song' and on the options you have four tracks released in 1990 and one really 'latest' one, released in 1999.
But, that is Musicians Association of Malawi for you - and their awards. Somehow, I think we are safer when we call them rewards.
Musicians Association of Malawi, or to be politically correct: Musicians Union of Malawi, is rewarding the people it likes and, to make the process legitimate or appearing so, it is soliciting votes from a confused few to endorse one of the options which, realistically speaking, are no options.
There certainly is no logic in asking me to select the Capital City of Malawi from the options of Karonga, Phalombe and Ntchisi. There is no answer and, sadly, in some of the categories that MUMA through is rewards is asking noble people to choose from there is no answer as well.
Whom does one choose there?
But, I do not fault MUMA or any of the organisers. At least, not me.
I got their e-mail. They were asking for my submission of nominations for the categories they have listed. Certainly, having sat on the entertainment and arts desk of the Times Group I had to have some knowledge. And, knowledge I had. The will I lacked.
I said I never had the time and let the buck pass. I asked a friend, on the ground, to assist me with it.
"You can leave the other areas and I will do them or ask others as well to assist," I instructed, hoping to get a fair view as well from different people instead of posting just mine.
Up to date, he is still filling it in. You would think I was asking him to copy the Bible by hand but nay, it was just putting in names and titles into some blank spaces.
End result? I submitted nothing. I let down MUMA. I contributed to their mediocre options. I am as guilty as whoever came with those rewards.
Am I the only one? Maybe yes, maybe no.
If I am the only one then the nominations show something about us. They fault our collective reasoning and laugh in our face when we claim to know and understand Malawi music and musicians. For, if at our best we can do that, then what can we do at our worst? We might start having Don Williams as one of our options in some category of 'Best Malawian Female Vocalist - Reggae'.
Thank heavens, we are not yet at our worst.
If I am not the only one though who saw the MUMA request and, like a request of a scammer, threw it into the dustbin then collectively we are guilty as well. The reflection of the ideas are ours. We stayed quiet and allowed MUMA to transgress the face of music with such impunity.
He was right, him who said bad leaders are voted into power by those who choose not to vote. Do you now see why some of us think you should hold your peace, stop pedaling on a moral high, and stop accusing our choices of May 20, 2014 if you never voted?
Like me who cannot fault MUMA, you should not fault us who voted even though the choice was something akin to that which MUMA is presenting before us.
MUMA, you represent our philosophy. You are us!
*If you know and follow Malawi Music, find the list on https://www.facebook.com/mumaawards/posts/682080695247934 and disagree with my views.
If MUMA is yet to be in the news for wrong reasons; well, you can expect them to be soon. Have you seen their nominations, most of them? It is the same old jazz. The same thing of saying 'vote for the latest best song' and on the options you have four tracks released in 1990 and one really 'latest' one, released in 1999.
But, that is Musicians Association of Malawi for you - and their awards. Somehow, I think we are safer when we call them rewards.
Musicians Association of Malawi, or to be politically correct: Musicians Union of Malawi, is rewarding the people it likes and, to make the process legitimate or appearing so, it is soliciting votes from a confused few to endorse one of the options which, realistically speaking, are no options.
There certainly is no logic in asking me to select the Capital City of Malawi from the options of Karonga, Phalombe and Ntchisi. There is no answer and, sadly, in some of the categories that MUMA through is rewards is asking noble people to choose from there is no answer as well.
Whom does one choose there?
But, I do not fault MUMA or any of the organisers. At least, not me.
I got their e-mail. They were asking for my submission of nominations for the categories they have listed. Certainly, having sat on the entertainment and arts desk of the Times Group I had to have some knowledge. And, knowledge I had. The will I lacked.
I said I never had the time and let the buck pass. I asked a friend, on the ground, to assist me with it.
"You can leave the other areas and I will do them or ask others as well to assist," I instructed, hoping to get a fair view as well from different people instead of posting just mine.
Up to date, he is still filling it in. You would think I was asking him to copy the Bible by hand but nay, it was just putting in names and titles into some blank spaces.
End result? I submitted nothing. I let down MUMA. I contributed to their mediocre options. I am as guilty as whoever came with those rewards.
Am I the only one? Maybe yes, maybe no.
If I am the only one then the nominations show something about us. They fault our collective reasoning and laugh in our face when we claim to know and understand Malawi music and musicians. For, if at our best we can do that, then what can we do at our worst? We might start having Don Williams as one of our options in some category of 'Best Malawian Female Vocalist - Reggae'.
Thank heavens, we are not yet at our worst.
If I am not the only one though who saw the MUMA request and, like a request of a scammer, threw it into the dustbin then collectively we are guilty as well. The reflection of the ideas are ours. We stayed quiet and allowed MUMA to transgress the face of music with such impunity.
He was right, him who said bad leaders are voted into power by those who choose not to vote. Do you now see why some of us think you should hold your peace, stop pedaling on a moral high, and stop accusing our choices of May 20, 2014 if you never voted?
Like me who cannot fault MUMA, you should not fault us who voted even though the choice was something akin to that which MUMA is presenting before us.
MUMA, you represent our philosophy. You are us!
*If you know and follow Malawi Music, find the list on https://www.facebook.com/mumaawards/posts/682080695247934 and disagree with my views.
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