CONTEMPORARY gospel musician Temba “Tembalami” Tagwirei, popularly known for songs Tomurumbidza and Zvinoda Kupemberwa, has disclosed that although there were technical glitches in online streaming, the use of such technology had kept him in touch with his loyal fans during the COVID-19-induced lockdown. BY FREEMAN MAKOPA He said the increase in COVID-19 cases had busted his bubble after his initial plans to have a lot of activities earlier were derailed. “At first, we were relaxed and building castles in the air with plans of an April flooded with events and much musical activity. April came and passed, so did May and it was then we realised this thing was not going anywhere anytime soon,” he said. Tembalami said this made him resort to the alternative available channels to stay relevant, such as live-streaming performances to meet the needs of his hungry fans. “I have been going strongly in consistent Facebook and YouTube live sessions for the past 16 weeks and the responses have been gradually increasing as more and more followers are investing in data bundles and setting aside time for some worship or musical treat from their favourite artiste,” he said. Tembalami said sharing streaming channels on other artistes’ platforms had been working well for his camp as it increased engagements. “Initially there would be technical glitches in streaming and the lone ranger mentality of many gospel artistes have made it that much more challenging. However, overtime, there have been great developments such as sharing streaming channels via other artistes’ platforms for increased coverage and even hosting other artistes on one’s live session,” he said. “This works well and increases engagement,” he said, adding that with the mutual input such as his collaborations with Takesure Zama, gospel diva Chelsea Mguni, Jonah Chivasa, Nyasha Mutonhori and gospel DJ Unlocked, the sessions have greatly improved. Tembalami said these strategic changes demanded a lot of hard work, commitment and sacrifice financially and time-wise. “Because now that fans have been introduced to this mode of musical appreciation, it is a disservice to make it irregular. We anticipate an increased need for re-introduction to actual live performances when this is all over,” he said. The artiste, who is currently riding high on his successful collaboration with gospel diva Janet Manyowa on a track titled Mbiri, is working on new projects.