The Praiz Mash Experience!

Meet Praise Mashilipa or ‘Praiz Mash’ (above), young, charming, part time presenter on Zambezi 107.7 fm, Livingstone’s leading local radio station which hosts our weekly radio show ‘The Chanters Lodge Experience with the Milli Jam Ingredient featuring Jay Hillz’. The show airs live on 107.7 fm every Sunday from 20.30-21.30 hrs CAT and is a lively mixture of international and local music, as well as chat with our Guest Of The Week. On the most recent edition the Guest was Praiz Mash.

Milli Jam wanted to know about the DJ’s name and Praise explained that his Dad had named him Praise after his mum had been through a very difficult labour while giving birth to him, at one point her life had even been threatened. He had been named Praise because his dad was so happy his mum had pulled through. “Oh!” Said Milli Jam “I thought it meant you were a gospel DJ!” We laughed, as some of us had thought the same!

Praise revealed that he’d been brought up in Livingstone, educated at David Livingstone High School, and that his parents were still in the city, his dad is employed at Central Statistics. Praise had been a member of the Zambezi fm Fan Club, his first introduction to the station, and had now been a part time presenter for about six months. Mostly his was the ‘graveyard shift’ – midnight to 05.00 hrs. “How do you cope with the cold weather at night at this time of year?” We wondered. “When you love what you do you hardly notice!” Replied (lied?) Praiz. His mentor at the station is E-Vibes, co-host with Jay Hillz of the 107.7 fm Breakfast Show.

Our music on this show was latest as usual. We opened with tracks from Avicii, Second City and Klingande. Jay chose a track from South African star Syapelile as well as from Zambia’s own MC Wabwino. Milli Jam dropped Fuse ODG and Sean Paul’s ‘Dangerous Love’, now a huge hit in UK and very hot round and about the Livingstone night clubs. We also featured Izrael’s beautiful ‘Efindingile’ (enough for me), the artist was formerly known as Exile and is one of Zambia’s most popular stars. My pick of the week was Elbow’s haunting ‘My Sad Captains’. The oldie of the week was an obscure track from Kelly Khumalo and no-one won the prize we give for naming the artist. “Previous prize winners have eaten us out of house and home anyway” I commented.

Praise declared himself an Arsenal supporter through and through. Favourite all time player – Thierry Henry, current star – Theo Walcott. His own musical taste he named as R&B and Acoustics. His favourite artists? Boyz 2 Men as well as Ne-Yo. Locally Izrael. “We have more and more in common” said Milli Jam, a huge fan of both the Gunners and Ne-Yo! “Are you married?” We asked. “No, but I’m taken.” The reply. All efforts to make him reveal the name of the one who had taken him failed! He thought Brazil would win the World Cup 2014. He had never done the bungee jump, it scared him even more than revealing his girl friend’s name! His biggest career influence? Kunda Mando, TV producer at ZNBC.

Asked where he would like to be and what he would like to be doing ten years’ from now, this personable, funny, hard working young presenter/DJ said he would like to have a Phd in English Language, be teaching the subject in England, married and driving a BMW. “Get in!” We said.

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Mike and Anne Gough

Meet Anne and Mike Gough (above), Guests on the most recent edition of the Chanters Lodge Experience with the Milli Jam Ingredient featuring Jay Hillz. ‘The Experience’ is our weekly radio show airing every Sunday night from 20.30-21.30 hrs on Zambezi 107.7 fm, Livingstone’s leading local radio station. Teachers both, Mike works at The Arnewood School, New Milton, Hampshire in UK while wife Anne is at The Island Learning Centre on the Isle of Wight. Mike is also head of the IT centre at Arnewood as well as the international co-ordinator. Anne’s learning centre helps children with learning difficulties prepare for a return to ‘regular’ school.

“How long have you been married?” Milli Jam asked at the top of the show, Mike sighed (though he denied it) and replied “thirty five years”. Anne and Mike told listeners that they have three daughters and one seven year old grandson – clearly the apple of his grandparents’ eye!

The Goughs explained that they were in this country to research a proposed trip to Zambia for Arnewood students in 2016. They were planning to bring a group of 12/15 youngsters for a month. They told listeners that the students’ itinerary would hopefully include time spent at Hillcrest School in Livingstone with Hillcrest students later travelling to UK on an exchange basis. There would be time spent working at the Butterfly Tree projects at Mukuni Village, building structures with money raised by the students in UK for the project. There would be a safari in Botswana as part of the trip and a week spent volunteering at lion encounter.
Mike and Anne told listeners they had arranged many successful trips in the past to countries as varied as Bolivia, Siberia and Tibet. There was a lot of work involved in planning, as well as selling the trip to prospective students and parents.

The music on the show was good with latest hit tracks from Sigma, The Vamps, David Guetta and Ed Sheeran. Jay and Milli Jam chose recordings from One Direction, Chris Brown and Zambian artists Eddy and Judy. Our oldie of the week was Brook Hogan’s ‘For A Moment’ and the prize we give to the first person to text us telling us the name of the performing artist was won by Mitch, who earned himself dinner for two with drinks at the lodge.

Mike revealed that he was a Liverpool supporter which pleased Jay who is too, and these people spent time congratulating each other on that afternoon’s win again Manchester City. Milli Jam and I were rather irked by this mutual admiration, and felt pleased that the lovely Anne had no interest whatsoever in football. As a couple Mike and Anne love cricket and are executive members at Hampshire County Cricket Club.

They told listeners that they had returned from a two day safari in Botswana that afternoon, they had very much enjoyed the outing and had been lucky to see a vast array of wildlife including lion and, Anne’s favourite, warthogs. They hoped to have time to do some of the many other tourist activities available around Victoria Falls during their stay, but ruled out the bungee jump!

Asked where they would like to be and what they would like to be doing in ten years’ time Anne said she would like to be on the silk trail exploring China, while Mike wanted to be revisiting communities he and his students had helped in the past, in different countries around the world. We thanked this interesting happy couple for guesting on the show and wished them well in the planning for their trip. We looked forward to welcoming some of their students as Guests on our programme in a couple of years’ time!

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The Philosophy of Ambiguity

The Philosophy of Ambiguity – thanks to Ruth in UK for these! For those who love the philosophy of ambiguity, as well as the idiosyncrasies of English!

1. ONE TEQUILA, TWO TEQUILA, THREE TEQUILA…… FLOOR.

2. ATHEISM IS A NON PROPHET ORGANIZATION.

3. I WENT TO A BOOKSTORE AND ASKED THE SALESWOMAN, “WHERE’S THE SELF- HELP SECTION?” SHE SAID IF SHE TOLD ME, IT WOULD DEFEAT THE PURPOSE.

4. WHAT IF THERE WERE NO HYPOTHETICAL QUESTIONS?

5. IS THERE ANOTHER WORD FOR SYNONYM?

6. WOULD A FLY WITHOUT WINGS BE CALLED A WALK?

7. IF A TORTOISE DOESN’T HAVE A SHELL, IS HE HOMELESS OR NAKED?

8. IF THE POLICE ARREST A MUTE, DO THEY TELL HIM HE HAS THE RIGHT TO REMAIN SILENT?

9. WHAT WAS THE BEST THING BEFORE SLICED BREAD?

10. HOW IS IT POSSIBLE TO HAVE A CIVIL WAR?

11. IF ONE SYNCHRONIZED SWIMMER DROWNS, DO THE REST DROWN TOO?

12. IF YOU ATE BOTH PASTA AND ANTIPASTO, WOULD YOU STILL BE HUNGRY?

13. WHOSE CRUEL IDEA WAS IT FOR THE WORD ‘LISP’ TO HAVE ‘S’ IN IT?

14. IF YOU SPIN AN ORIENTAL MAN IN A CIRCLE THREE TIMES, DOES HE BECOME DISORIENTED?

15. WHY DO SHOPS HAVE SIGNS, ‘GUIDE DOGS ONLY’ ? THE DOGS CAN’T READ AND THEIR OWNERS ARE BLIND.

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Stephanie McCourt

This, from UKZambians caught my eye – following in the footsteps of the likes of Anna Mwale, Samantha Mumba and Emile Sande!

“A new emerging talent is about to make waves on the music scene. Soul singer Stephanie McCourt (above) has signed with the UK record company, Unstoppable Music Group. The label is headed by music executive Ben Wynter, who has previously worked with some of the world’s biggest artists, including Destiny’s Child, Nas and Mariah Carey. Stephanie, whose mother is Zambian and father Irish, has been singing since she can remember and says ‘Zambian music is the most beautiful music to me, it has real heart and soul.’

At the age of 9, Stephanie’s parents enrolled her with legendary vocal coach Tona de Brett, who has also trained the vocal pipes of Lily Allen, Dido and Duffy to name a few. Like most aspiring artists, she had a hard time finding someone that would recognise her talents and spent years drifting in and out of bands, working with various producers and trying to find out who she was, creatively.

That all changed when she met music producer EFX, owner of the London based, Hot Money Studios. The beat-maker who has created tracks for Esmee Denters, Jay Sean and Wiley,  introduced Stephanie to Wynter, who instantly saw potential in the young songstress and signed her to his label.

On how her Zambian heritage has influenced her, Stephanie says :

“Zambian culture has had a heavy influence on me. From traditional foods like wild mushrooms and okra yum yum to Rumba music. My mother is from Ndola and in the past I have flown over many times to visit family. I have seen both contrasting parts of Zambia, from the shanty towns, to the Victoria Falls. Livingstone is one of my favourite places on earth, the Falls and wild life took my breath away. My most memorable moment when visiting Zambia and that is still very close to my heart, was when I went to bury my grand-dad. It was my first experience of a traditional Zambian funeral and though extremely heart breaking, it was during this time I got to hear the local choirs which moved me deeply. There were no instruments, just pure voices singing harmony, it was blissful.“

Stephanie’s next step is completing her EP due for release this Spring 2014. She will also be hitting the London music circuit,  performing at numerous venues leading up to its release. On her future the singer says;  ‘Failure isn’t an option, I’m born to sing and now I’m unstoppable so its destiny, things have to work out.’

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Honeymoon Experience!

Meet Monica and George Thompson (above), she from Chingola, Zambia and he originally from Leeds and now from South London, UK. The couple were married in Zambia in September and whilst on their honeymoon staying at Chanters, were our charming and entertaining Guests on the most recent edition of the Chanters Lodge Experience with the Milli Jam Ingredient featuring George da Soulchild. The Experience is our weekly Sunday night radio show on Zambezi 107.7 fm, Livingstone’s leading local radio station, on which we play latest international and Zambian music, chat to our Guests and give away a prize of a dinner for two at the lodge – if a lucky listener can text us quickly telling us who’s the artist on our ‘oldie of the week’. Mutinta won the prize on this show telling us that ‘Lonely’ was recorded by Akon! We also give pertinent social media updates and international  chart news on the show.

George and Monica told listeners that they had met about two years ago on a dating site on the internet and had corresponded regularly throughout the intervening period. George had promised Monica that when he came to Zambia, if everything was well between them, they would get married and so it had come to pass! Monica is a nurse at the Nchanga School of Nursing on the Copperbelt though she revealed that she had recently resigned her appointment after 18 years of service. George is semi-retired though he still follows his passion of restoring classic British motor cycles of which he now has as many as fourteen in his personal possession. He revealed that his sons buy him old motor bikes for about 15,000 pounds which sell for as much as 35,000 pounds when restored. Before retirement George had been in the armed forces and then involved with heavy plant shifting for Britain’s sea defences.

The music on the show was nice with latest tracks from Storm Queen, Taylor Swift, Draf-X, Slap D, Miley Cyrus and Chris Brown. My regular ‘pick of the week’ was Future’s ‘Real and True’ featuring Miley Cyrus and Mr Hudson. We closed with Britney Spears’ ‘Perfume’.

We wondered whether George had paid ‘lobola’ to be able to marry Monica and she confirmed that he had – ‘under protest’ – but the amount was not revealed! We also asked whether he had been served the traditional food by Monica’s family that he could expect to eat once they were wed, together with the traditional washing of his hands and feet, and it was confirmed. We laughed when George declared that he could only eat nsima, Zambia’s staple food, when it was ‘treated’ with salt and tomato sauce! Heresy to those Zambians present in the studio! George told listeners he had two sons by previous relationships and Monica two boys and a girl. While they had been in Livingstone they had visited the crocodile park and had taken a game drive in the Mosi-o-Tunya NP as well as going to see the Falls. Monica had been excited to see a giraffe for the first time!

George revealed that his son takes him to watch Arsenal when he’s in London, but as he originated from the north of England he also cares about Leeds United and Manchester United results. He was queried by Milli Jam for such disloyalty to Arsenal! He told listeners that his favourite music is 60’s and that he had recently enjoyed a Rolling Stones concert in Hyde Park, London. Monica said she had no interest in football and when it came to music her taste was gospel music with ‘praise and worship’.

This lovely couple revealed that in ten years’ time George hoped to still be married to Monica, riding motor bikes and eating nsima, Monica that after some years working in UK that they would be happily settled together back in Zambia. We wished them the best of luck!

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Exmoor

If you didn’t already know, I love Twitter! Why? Well one of the reasons is that it’s always full of surprises. Last Saturday I retweeted a tweet from Exmoor For All (see the link), and got a thank you to which I replied that I loved Exmoor which held very happy memories for me. Elke Winzer (from Exmoor For All) tweeted me asking if I would write a short piece for her blog site, so this was what I came up with:

“Everyone tells me how lucky I am to live in a wonderful place like Victoria Falls and that is true. Not everyone has the chance to live just 10 kms away from one of the natural wonders of the world.
However, I come from Tiverton in Devon and was lucky enough to be brought up just that same roughly 10 kms (perhaps a little further) from Exmoor and how well I remember that beautiful place.

The heather and the bilberries spring immediately to mind. Picnics with my family overlooking the Devil’s Punchbowl, clambering over the stones at Tarr Steps (picture) and that wonderful drive over the moors to Lynton and Lynmouth, always asking my parents about the terrible floods and loving the ride from Lynmouth up to Lynton on the cable railway!

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Imperial Obsessions

 
From the LSE Blog

Joanna Lewis (above) is one of the organisers of the international conference, Imperial Obsessions: David Livingstone, Africa and world history: a life and legacy considered which takes place in Livingstone from 19th to 21st April. We are happy too have Joanna and many of the other delegates staying at Chanters Lodge. The conference starts today. Joanna writes:

There are few notable figures who are not dogged by controversy and the Scottish explorer and missionary David Livingstone is certainly not one of them. It is probably the reason why, 200 years after he was born, historians, literary critics, geographers, anthropologists, artists, explorers, writers and humanitarian activists are gathering in Zambia in the town that still bears his name. Scottish explorer David Livingstone is the subject of much celebration on the bicentenary of his birth.

Imperial Obsessions: David Livingstone, Africa and world history: a life and legacy considered takes place from 19 to 21 April 2013 in Livingstone. This international conference has been organised jointly between LSE, the National Museum Board of Zambia in association with the David Livingstone Bicentenary, Zambia.

HRH Senior Chieftainess Nkomeshya Mukamambo II of Chongwe District is one of several Zambian dignitaries attending the conference and will deliver the opening keynote address.

My choice of the title, Imperial Obsessions, refers to Livingstone’s particular self-belief and drive, the cult that developed after his death which defined Britain’s engagement with Africa for over a century and the determination of scholars to pursue him to this day.

A man of huge contradictions is the theme of Tim Jeal’s seminal lecture, Livingstone’s most famous biographer. Jeal exposed his many flaws to a Western audience when he first published his painstaking research in 1974.  The second day will end with another keynote address: British historian Professor John Mackenzie, who pioneered the role of the empire in British history and popular culture, will deliver a verdict of Livingstone as the figure who dramatically changed the political weather and attitudes towards Africa in the Victorian era and beyond.  Finally, on the last day, Professor Keith Hart with a doctoral student from Pretoria will present a vision of a 21st century humanised economy in Africa – delivering an upbeat view of the realisation finally of the potential of African entrepreneurship within a globalised  economy – a vision Livingstone himself shared .

But there are histories of pain and suffering here too. Slavery and human trafficking is a scourge on our collective record on human rights, now as then. Yet then as now, individuals decide they can make a difference. In Livingstone town, a local minister pioneered a campaign to draw attention to the use of child slave labour to break stones for bricks in the luxury hotel industry. As he once told me “sympathy is not enough”.

Likewise the conference will be a chance to hear women on women in history. Writers and novelists will be talking to new audiences about their work highlighting the key role and nightmare of being one of Livingstone’s women, from his long-suffering wife Mary, to the women-slaves in the caravans like Halima, who cooked his food and tended his sores. Their contribution was almost instantly erased in the memorialisation after his death in 1873.

Also, the conference brings a range of inter-disciplinary scholarship to an African audience. For example, Dutch artist Sybren Renama’s painstaking search for the fragments of the African mpundu tree under which Livingstone’s African followers/co-explorers buried him.

Critically the conference is a platform for Zambian historians to present their latest research. Dr Walima Kalusa has returned to the unique and binding relationship between Livingstone and local chiefs, deconstructing the paper trail created. Dr Friday Mufuzi reveals the struggle involved in exhibiting Livingstone for western tourist consumption versus local views. Finally, it is a great chance to find out what Africans think about Livingstone and the colonial past. In addition to the formal conference, a free lecture and round table will be open to the public held the Town Hall early next week. It will be chance to see how far my research on the memory of Livingstone in Zambia for a book (Livingstone: a life in death) is true. So far it suggests a new diversity and scepticism in attitudes to him and the colonial past; and that today his importance and significance are waning.

Yet perhaps, it remains significantly strong in towns like Livingstone where he is the patron saint of tourism, offering an economic lifeline. He is a hugely important figure to their Senior Chief, who regularly tells tourists about the swallowing of the “Living-stone” ceremony.  Livingstone remains a sketchily-known figure among Christian congregations of Anglican/Scottish lineage. Significantly, many Zambians recall a personal connection with him, via stories passed down through oral histories. One former ruling party official loved remembering how his great grandfather told him Livingstone explained the rain cycle to them. Another African minister tracked me down to divulge how his ancestors translated the first bible into the local vernacular, inspired by his presence in their area. That personal connection; that believed sense of intimacy (however misplaced, reconfigured for political uses or exaggerated by missionary texts) was encapsulated by the verdict of former Zambian president Kenneth Kaunda: “he was one of us”.

This conference has been supported by LSE Annual Fund as part of the LSE Africa Initiative which seeks to exchange knowledge with African institutions and scholars and ensure that it maintains its place in the global debate

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Music Review 2012

George da Soulchild Kaufela, co-presenter of our highly successful weekly Sunday night radio show on Zambezi 107.7 fm forwarded this piece for the blog. Thanks George!

It’s been a great year for the Zambian music industry! More artists have come on board and more have become household names. Some artists have simply maintained their status while others have lost out and their names and music are slowly fading “back into black”. Here’s a look at selected months, artists and events from 2012.

March 2012
‘Hip-Hop Crisis’ attended the 54th Grammy Awards in LA saying it was a good thing because it helped expose the international community to Zambian music. The local hip hop artist said “the thing about such events is that you get to meet people and as time goes by, you start crossing paths and you get familiar with each other, and that’s how you build relations.¨

May 2012
Zambia’s Mampi (above) became the first celebrity to be evicted from the Big Brother Africa 2012 house. The 25-year-old singer said a lot of pretense was required for one to win the US$300,000 reality show. “I feel the same, I’m happy that I went in at the time I went in and came out at the time I came out. Being there, I saw what is required, you actually have to pretend. If you don’t pretend, you can’t win. I knew I was not going to win because I am not the type that pretends,” Mampi said. Mampi did however manage to mesmerize Big Brother Star Games viewers with her signature dance moves.
Meanwhile Africa Magic has announced Big Brother Season 8 details will be out in mid-January 2013.

June 2012
Petersen took a shot at politicians and released his highly anticipated controversial album JOB 13:13. The most controversial song on the album “Makwabo Mu Church” translates as ‘Business Conducted in the House Of God’ and it brought about plenty of talking points! Petersen explained that he did not understand why so many churches conduct business in the house of God. To him, if a church announcement says ‘brother Chilembo is selling his car for a negotiable price’ or ‘Sister Betty will be hosting a fundraising braii at church’, that is trading in the house of God and that is why he is exhorting the return of Jesus Christ to whip these offenders!

Still in June
Emeli Sande born from Zambian father (Joel Sande) and English Mother (Diane Sande) won the 2012 UKZAMBIANS Excellence Awards Female Vocalist/Songwriter of the Year Award. Adele Emeli Sandé (born 10 March 1988: Alford, Aberdeenshire, Scotland) known by her stage name Emeli Sandé, is a soul and R&B recording artist and songwriter. A former medical student, Sandé has achieved two top 10 singles in the UK. Her debut album, Our Version Of Events, is nailed on for No1 in the UK and critics across the board have voted her the voice of 2012. Emeli Sandé has written hits for some of the biggest names in the music business, including Cheryl Cole, Tinie Tempah and Susan Boyle. Her album ‘Our Version Of Events’, ended the year top of the UK album Charts. We long to see her at home in Zambia!

October
Zambian rap artist Ruff Kid becomes the second artist from Zambia to be awarded the prestigious BEFFTA Award. Ruff Kid was nominated under the category for Best international Act at this year’s BEFFTA awards. Other nominees in the same category included Camp Mula, D’Banj, Cover Drive, Grace Galaxy and Zahara.
Ruff Kid in his acceptance speech said: “This is all down to my fans and supporters. My management and I have been working tirelessly asking people to support and vote, and this is proof that every vote counts. I am just grateful that people took the time to vote and support me, I am also grateful to God for providing me with such an amazing opportunity and the BEFFTA Awards for recognizing my work”

November
ZNBC director general Chibamba Kanyama apologized for the institution’s latest failure to meet viewer expectations during the 2012 Born n Bred Music Video Awards ceremony held at Lusaka’s Government Complex and promised to do better in the future. While Macky2 won three out of the five categories in which he was nominated. B1’s ‘Sikiliti’ won radio’s most popular song of the year.

December
Slap Dee’s ‘Kuichayila’ voted song on the year for the year 2012 by listeners on five different radio station including Zambezi FM Radio. The Lusaka based rapper who is leader of one of the most popular hip-hop Groups ‘XYZ’ recently ended his beef with a certain named Copperbelt rapper. At some point last year he (Slap Dee) lost his grip on the local scene as the Copperbelt rapper made more headlines and received more airplay than he did.

2013 will, without a doubt, be a very competitive year on the local music scene as most artists ,music producers, music video editors/producers seek international recognition.

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More ‘Wise Words’ From Ruth Binney

Check the excellent review (see below) of my sister Ruth Binney‘s (above) new book ‘Wise Words And Country House Ways’ in no less than the UK Spectator magazine! No wonder Julian Fellowes wrote the foreword – firstly he and Ruth were virtually neighbours when she lived in West Stafford, just outside Dorchester, and secondly the book is clearly a great read!

Ruth recently moved back to our home county of Devon, and has just taken up golf! We look forward to news of her handicap. It’s been a big year for Ruth one way and another, with the birth of her first grand-daughter Molly and a new relationship with partner Mark.

We wish her ‘best of sales’ for the new book and I look forward to receiving my ‘comp’ copy!! Here’s the review:

“Finally, a simple idea, brilliantly done. Ruth Binney’s Wise Words & Country House Ways (David & Charles, £9.99) is aimed directly at the Downton Abbey audience, even to the extent of having a foreword by Julian Fellowes. It is a guide to what it was really like to live in a country house, whether you were a lord, lady, maid or cook. It has the rules of etiquette, the servants’ daily routines, the housekeeping maxims, the texture of people’s lives. How much to tip a footman? I had always wondered. Put it this way: my ten-year-old daughter wants this for Christmas, and so does my mother. This is a sentence no book reviewer ever wishes to write, but the way things are going, I may actually be compelled to go out and buy one. A copy of the book, that is, not a country house.”

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