BY FREEMAN MAKOPA FAST-RISING Afro-pop artiste Freebouy (pictured), real name Benjamini Mlambo has disclosed that doing music in the remote area of Chipinge meant he had to work harder than his peers in cities in order to make a breakthrough. “I have already amassed quite a following with hits like Vakakumirira, Kunanaidzana (featuring Tobie Staira), My Season and She Loves Me having been well received by a cross-section of listeners,” he said. Mlambo added that he wanted to follow in the footsteps of big-name singers like Nox, Trevor Dongo and Ammara Brown, some of Zimbabwe’s finest in the genre. But hailing from remote Chipinge, where a dearth of radio stations and promoters makes it very difficult for local artistes to realise their full potential, Freebouy said he had to work “five times harder” than his peers from the bigger cities to reach audiences countrywide,” he said Mlambo said the emergence of a local channel came as a blessing to his career as he had managed to gain exposure and scoop awards in the process. “However, the emergence of local channel Diamond FM in Mutare has meant that artistes like Freebouy can now get the much-needed exposure. My songs have been dominating the airwaves on Diamond FM, which has enabled me to scoop a variety of awards, most notably the Manicaland Dancehall Artiste of the Year for 2019.” Being in the limelight has also come with commercial opportunities for Freebouy as he is now the singer of Diamond FM’s promo-tune Gindimukindi and a healthcare song titled Hutano hwemhuri. Freebouy also highlighted that although he had managed to make early achievements, he would remain humble and help other musicians with the same background to gain recognition.