Upcoming artist Mwana kalampa’s manager Jeff Samatuka, popularly known as skillz money king, has blamed poor event planning for delays in allowing artists to perform saying the situation forces musicians to rush their performances, limits interaction with audiences and affects the quality of live entertainment.
Speaking in an interview with Lusaka Star, Samatuka said,delays in allowing artists to perform force them to rush through their performances because of limited time and the need to perform before audiences begin leaving the venue.
”The delay in performing on stage leads artists to sing in a hurry because of limited time because they want to perform before people leave,” he said.
Samatuka added that the delays also deny artists enough time to interact with their fans during performances.
”Artists do not get a chance to talk to the audience for a long time,” he said.
He further emphasized that some event organizers only begin preparing for an event on the very day it is scheduled instead of making the necessary arrangements in advance.
Samatuka advised artists not to depend entirely on event organizers but to send their managers to the venue before the event to help coordinate preparations.
”For example, if the event is in Kasama, a musician should send their manager maybe a day before the event to work with the organizers and ensure everything is in place,” he said.
Meanwhile, another upcoming artist Joshua Musonda said,delays in the programme reduce the time allocated to artists, making it difficult for them to complete their performances and affecting their confidence on stage.
”Because of the delays, artists lose confidence after waiting for a long time, and their delivery on stage becomes poor,” he said.
“I think events are delayed because of poor organization by event organizers and those responsible for presenting artists on stage. Sometimes sound checks are not done in time”.
He urged event organizers to prepare all logistics well in advance and ensure DJs receive artists’ music on time to avoid unnecessary delays and improve the overall experience for both performers and audiences.