More to be done

What’s good my people; we are back with another banging edition of tjil. We have prepared exciting music features and entertainment news for you, like we always do. But before we get to that, I would like to voice my disappointment with the lack of music review shows on Namibian radio stations, popular blogs and podcasts.I understand that music is consumed instantly these days and it might be hard to keep up with the latest music releases as artists seem to be on a music-sharing vibe. However, the music scene still needs critical voices on platforms like radio, blogs and podcasts, reviewing the music that is being put out there. Correct me if I am wrong, but so far I only know of one music review show on radio, that is hosted by Shona Ngava on Nust FM. The Oxford Companion to Music defines music criticism as “the intellectual activity of formulating judgements on the value and degree of excellence of individual works of music, or whole groups or genres”. The music scene in Namibia needs more music criticism, not just for the sake of it but to grow the industry. Music reviews help artists better their artistry and enlighten music fans on some of the elements they should pay attention to when listening to music.I call on industry peers and music fans to exploit this avenue. Writing music reviews or having radio shows that tackles music reviews gives you a chance to become an influencer in this regard. People are going to start looking to you to find out who is trending musically and what kind of Namibian songs they should add to their playlists.People who operate in the media space and ultimately introduce the masses to new musical developments always have a huge amount of influence. That is the great thing about being a media practitioner, especially in the entertainment circles. You are also a social curator. We need more music reviews because only music critics can articulate words to translate it into consciousness, and eventually our instinctive response to a song. Only they can connect dots and close the deal on arts’ attempt to heal the mind. Critics can provide information and assess value. They can provide context to the music we are fed by our artists.On the other hand, I blame music fans to a certain extent for not offering adequate support to initiatives that attempt to grow the culture through reviews. Namibian music fans need to engage and be interactive more when it comes to this area. I urge music fans to tune into radio as well as comment, share and like blogs that offer music reviews. By doing that, people who review music will be more encouraged to keep on reviewing music because they know there is support out there and that people engage in these kinds of conversations. Lastly, you can blog or podcast about anything in Namibian entertainment scene; music business, interesting social influencers and more. Just be sure to be honest and discuss matters in a positive light even when you are critiquing.In this edition you can look forward to finding out what your favourite singers including Ann Singer, Gino Luv and Monique English have been up to. Enjoy this edition!michael@namibiansun.com

More to be done

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Namibian Sun 2025-07-02

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More to be done

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Namibian Sun 2025-07-02

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