On the surface, Zimbabwean life seems fast paced. There is always so much to do, with so little having been done. There is always so many places to go, but more than one reason to stay in the same. This constant buzz in thought and action makes for what appears like a busy life, but in the frame of progress Zimbabwean life is extremely slow.
In a nutshell, this is the story that makes up J.A.Y's debut album Namatirai Ghetto. A project weighed heavy by both social commentary and personal reflection, with ambient textures that add to the subject matter's gravitas.
Now while still regarded as a new face on the music scene, J.A.Y is not by any means new to making music. The singer's career began with the dawn of the decade, a time when he was known as A-Jay and his rap style was a lot more melodic rather than its current ambient nature, and English lyricism was predominant in his tracks.
Namatirai Ghetto is in a sense the culmination of J.A.Y's metamorphosis. The journey from Anesu, to A-Jay, to J.A.Y. A shift in artistry he partly reflects on with "Over 4.5," a track centred on both how life is a gamble and how much J.A.Y bets on himself: "Handina kuramba kuti munogona, but you can't rap like me."
This reflection on where the rapper has come from is added to by "High Skuru," a humour inclined conversation on J.A.Y's time as a teenager, which features Talito. The track describes him as a gifted youth who was petulant and constantly in conflict with authority figures.
Dominant in Namatirai Ghetto is the subject of mental health, particularly depression and escapism. "Thomas" tells the fictional story of a man who succumbs to the pressures of life and commits suicide. It calls us to not only seek help when we need it but to also be our brother's keeper. This is paralleled by the "August 3rd Interlude," a story of both heartbreak and attempted suicide. Brief but with an ocean of depth.
The title track is both an ode to and a fervent prayer for the Zimbabwean ghetto, a notion particularly captured in the opening refrain: "Ndauya pano nhasi kuzokanda chikumbiro/Let us come together kunge mapepa nemabhilo/Kuwadzana, DZ, Mbare, Budiriro nemaghetto ese arikuda mahero."
Kuwadzana is the place J.A.Y calls home and he pays homage to it with "Guzzlers," a track that gets its name from the most popular bar in the suburb (and one of the most popular bars in Harare). The track uses the neighbourhood and the figures found in it as a microcosm for Zimbabwean society as a whole. Apt, although it paints a sad state of affairs.
In ending "Camphor" sees J.A.Y appreciative of how far he's come, while painting the dream as success and the desired end goal of each day as simply survival: "Life inomborema, ndomboda kuchema/Asi handina wekuudza saka ndingobhema."
All through Namatirai Ghetto there is a pendulum that constantly swings in the album's rhythm, driven by the spacious production. The production cast of MarkMyWordz Beatz, Rayo Beats, JLY Beats, SauceBoy Beats, Sound By Ye, and ODD Status deliver bouncy yet melancholic beats that make clever use of drums and synth. The near perfect pocket of sound for the rapper.
The album feels intentional from start to finish, and meant for the stories it tells. From the decrepitude of what surrounds the Zimbabwean youth, to the dreams of something brighter, and even the pain suffocated by smoking marijuana.
Greedysouth rating: 7.7/10