Mohalenyane Phakela
AFRO Pop sensation, Damario, has set his sights beyond Lesotho’s borders with a drive to market his music in the southern African region.
Damario told the Weekender this week he was now working on ensuring his music gets airplay in Botswana and Swaziland in addition to South Africa where he has already made inroads since the release of his second solo album, My Journey 2, which features the hit Khalase e Ncha.
“I am currently working on organising performance slots outside the country in places such as Johannesburg and increasing the airplay of my music in Botswana and Swaziland as they were only recently made aware of my second album,” he said.
“After I did a couple of shows in those countries between November last year and March this year, I decided to market it beyond South Africa because of the positive response.”
Damario said fans in Botswana and Swaziland had asked for copies of the album.
“So I am working with promoters from the two countries as well as extending my South African reach by venturing into such cities such as Cape Town and Durban,” he said, adding that he would delay working on his third album owing to the demand for his current offering.
The Khubetsoana-born muso added that he would also soon remix Khalase e Ncha, with which he has notched a number of accolades as well as the pseudonym “Mr Khalase e Ncha”.
“Due to the hype the single generated, I realised that I serve a flexible market and decided to do a House version of Khalase E Ncha since it is one of the genres that are popular around town,” said Damario.
“I am working with DJ Phyzix from Pretoria on the remix and fans can expect it by the end of this month.”
Khalase e Ncha was recorded in Pretoria sometime in 2013 ahead of My Journey 2 which was launched later on that year.
The track proved to be a hit upon its release and even dominated South African radio station, Lesedi FM’s charts on Ba2cada’s afternoon show Rea Kubeletsa, sitting on the number one spot for two consecutive weeks. It also won pride of place on TK FM’s Rocka Feela Hit Jam programme in July last year, with the radio station giving Damario an award for the achievement.
According to the gifted singer, Khalase E Ncha, which has elements of Dancehall, is meant to reignite the spark in fading relationships, reminding couples of the happier and adventurous times when they first met. In the track, Damario urges couples not to take each other for granted and just like when they first met.
Furthermore, the song tells those experiencing difficulties in their relationships due to fear, worries, secrets and insecurities to not hide behind cunning crocodile’s smiles.
