The COVID 19 pandemic has shattered the status quo globally, causing a ripple effect in the lives of virtually everyone who is anyone in the world.
It’s not just life, as we have known it that has changed but also the hustle.
It’s a whammy for all whose hustle was either permanent or temporal as jobs become obsolete. Concerts have been cancelled, festivals postponed, forcing the entertainment industry to grind to a halt. Artists have been forced to find ingenious and creative ways to stay afloat during this time with the use of social media. The coronavirus situation is certainly a serious one. Any bearing that the outbreak might have on any industry – from education to hospitality to travel to entertainment – cannot eclipse the threat that it poses to health and safety, with tens of thousands of people already dead.
The ripple effects of the cancellation of just one entertainment event/show has both economic and cultural repercussions.
It therefore goes without saying that COVID-19 has shocked the showbiz in unexpected and unprecedented ways.
Also, feeling its brunt is Terence Ginindza (popularly known as DJ Xtra Luv), possibly one of the finest deejays Eswatini has ever produced.
With an understanding of the industry that only comes with experience having seen the industry evolve over the past decades, he says that the changes had never envisioned that business would take such a hit. “The current situation of the coronavirus has a very negative impact on the economy as a whole so it goes without saying that it is has put a dent on my projects,” he says.
This is all new for the DJ who deserves legendary status for being among the few during his time who were bold enough to sail on uncharted territory – the murky waters of an unpredictable music industry back in the day when music wasn’t quite regarded as a worthy enough professional career.
The massive ‘knock’ the industry has taken is all new for the DJ whose academic background is in Journalism and he did some freelance work specializing in entertainment news for The Nation magazine before landing a job as the fulltime resident DJ and later, being promoted to the position of entertainment coordinator of Eswatini’s most infamous night spot at the time, The Why Not Disco & Nightclub. Things have gone topsy turvy for the DJ who in the 90s was very much in the forefront of the entertainment scene and who at that time, formed Streetjoy Promotions, an entertainment company based at the Gables specializing in the hire services for sound system, stage and lighting, events management as well as artist, Dj and dancers management.
It was in the year 2000 that he left the Why Not to concentrate on his company.
Entertainment is therefore his lifeline, his ‘bread and butter.
He admits the coronavirus outbreak has been a rude awakening in all spheres of his life. “Bookings has been cancelled and some put on hold due to the lockdown and that means no business as we rely heavily on events that involve lots of people not regarded as essential services,” he states.
He reveals that working from home has become his new reality and this has forced him to go to the drawing board to reevaluate and restrategize about the future.
“It is a wakeup call for us entertainers,” he further says.
He is however optimistic that things will return to normal sometime in the future and advised the nation to observe all the necessary preventative measures and stay safe.
Overall, he is still clinging onto hopes that he will pursue the dreams he had before the world was thrust into this nightmare which we all haven’t yet woken up from.
“It was my wish that before the end of the year, I would launch Dj Xtra Luv Foundation. Although there is still a lot to do, things like creating the foundation’s road map, assembling the right team, drafting our working policy etc,” he explains.
Apart from music, he is also into sport and actually, manages a soccer team.
He states that the partial lockdown began at the time when his soccer team Emaselesele FC was at its peak and the COVID 19 restrictions has made it impossible to implement their training programmes. “Individual training program is not practical at this level. These are not professional players and therefore, they need constant monitoring,” he goes on to say. The team currently sits at the top of the log with 44 points, having played 21 games with only 9 games remaining for the season. “It is our wish for the team to win the league in order to progress to Super League division,” he says. In the meantime, he is taking it one day at a time, hopeful for a better tomorrow.
Discussion about this post