Kopala Swag to hold auditions

Zambia Daily Mail by Online Editor on 5/25/13

By KELVIN KACHINGWE

SOME people have wondered what Kopala Swag is all about! But whatever it may be, the people behind Kopala Swag, which has been popularised by Macky II, will next week be holding auditions across the country in an effort to identify untapped talent.

Macky II’s manager Shawn Kaystar told the Weekend Mail in an interview in Lusaka that the aim of the auditions is to give chance to talent that has been crying for an opportunity to work with the likes of Pilato, Macky II and Chef 187, a platform.

“There is a lot of untapped talent, but they can’t afford to pay for studio time, so we want to basically lay a foundation for them. We don’t mind if they are singers, rappers or whatever background, all we want is good music and talent,” Kaystar said.

“They are also free to come with their instruments or come and just do acapella. We have three good judges lined-up, but we’re not disclosing the names yet. We want to keep it professional, but one is a producer, very good producer actually, the other one is a female singer, while the other is a hip-hop artiste.”

Kopala Swag are looking at getting 20 people of which 15 will serve on Macky II’s Hope Foundation, which the musician recently set-up to help the underprivileged.

The foundation will then come up with a compilation album after which the artistes will be free to work with anyone.

The other five will be signed under the Kopala Swag label under which they will be able to record their respective albums.

The first round of auditions will be held on May 31 at East Point Libala, Lusaka between 08:00 hours and 16:00 hours, after which there will be an after party in the night at the same venue.

A number of musicians are expected to perform at the party, including B Flow, T Sean, Kay Kanyelele, Muzo Alfonso, TAP with Macky II and Chef 187 as the main acts.

However, the auditions are not restricted to Lusaka as the next date is scheduled for Ndola at Alpha Entertainment Studios on June 2 to 8 from 08:00 to 16:00 hours.

For the rest of the towns, the auditions will be held in the towns where the Kopala Swag team is scheduled to hold performances. This will mean holding the auditions during the day and the scheduled performance in the night.