By Jeoffrey Mukubi
Gazza has always been unapologetic when it comes to making music, but even more so on satisfying his fans, by giving his all. His latest surprise EP titled ‘Road To Messiah’ is a testimony of his hard work and consistency. This EP serves as a prelude to his upcoming album and once again, he proved why he is one of the best to ever do it in The Land of The Brave.
The music encompasses his passion for singing, which has been the order of the day ever since dropping ‘Misunderstood’ in 2018 and his storytelling is even more enticing in this project.
The first song titled ‘Do You’ is a full-on RnB song and the slow beats and electric guitar riding the sonic waves and sets the tone for the whole EP. The flow of the song resembles another song titled ‘Oka Nude’ off his previous album.
His second song ‘All My Life’ however is one that focuses on chanted vocals, complex intersecting rhythms, and percussion, these are usually beats you expect from West Africa, but Gazza does a wonderful job in maintaining his authenticity and verbosity on the song.
‘Uuteku’, which is the third song off the project, is mostly in his vernacular language; Oshiwambo.
The song is where Gazza’s singing really comes to play as he impressively finds his range and it sound like he is not forcing his vocal chords to reach the high notes.
To my understanding, these are essentially the songs that did not make it on the upcoming ‘Messiah’ album, but after a few listens, one can only imagine what the album will sound like.
With Gazza being known as the life of the party when it comes to music, Road To Messiah is no exception. Songs like ‘Otchike tche Tweeta’ and ‘Finna’ are exactly the songs to play at a party and although Gazza does not like to be boxed into a genre, the last ten years have seen his biggest songs being Afro-House.
If we did have a rating then I would give the EP three out of five stars. The Hebrew word “Mashiach,” meaning Messiah, means “the one anointed with oil.” The custom of anointing with oil is a ritual act designed to elevate those designated for priestly, royal or sometimes even prophetic roles and Gazza is slowly rising to the occasion of being a Messiah for Namibian music.
