One of Malawi’s successful musicians Faith Mussa of Mdidi and Desperate hit songs has tipped upcoming artists in the country in order to empower them become successful in the trade.
Mussa who is currently on music break to concentrate on his studies (Master’s in Business, Marketing and Leadership) in the Washington DC (US), said he was pondering on retirement.
In an interview, he outlined a number of valuable tips for one to have a successful music career ranging from being authentic to business mindfulness.
“Today, I would like to speak something both as a Malawian and global African artist. And I hope this will help one or two budding talents to grasp a clear vision of their music.
“The first step to succeed in music is to believe in yourself, be creative and original, and love what you do. Passion is what will take you to greater heights even when you encounter obstacles on the way because you are always motivated,” said Faith.
Faith began his music career at the age (10 years) when his father (Pastor David Mussa) bought him a guitar when he was returning from school in the United Kingdom (UK).
His father also taught him how to play the guitar before he started playing the instrument in the family band called The Mussa Family in 1990s.
Later, Faith became solo and started recording own songs and albums. He has four albums, namely Timanjoya (2008), Desperate (2013), Mdidi (2015) and Kalilima (2018).
Apart from releasing the successful albums, Faith has travelled across the globe to perform at different festivals.
For example, he has performed at Woodburner and Glastonbury festivals (UK), Hilma festival (Norway), Sauti zabusara festival (Zanzibar), Lake of Stars (Malawi and UK) and the World Fest in California, US.
He attributed all these successes to his passion, hard work, determination and networking.
“Educating yourself about the music industry is also importance because it gets you to know some practices and integrities such as organising yourself as a brand. There are also issues of management, networking, digital marketing which expose you to both local and international audiences.” said Faith.
According to the musician who harnessed badza and One-Man Band, there is so much that aspiring and budding musicians can learn from Malawian traditions and cultures which can give them a leverage on the international music market.
He cited that the global music market has popular genres that are influenced by Nigerians, South Africans and Americans.
Said Faith: “The point I am trying to drive home is that there is little that Malawian artists can achieve by copying music styles from other countries.
“One can be popular in Malawi by singing Afrobeat or Amapiano. But at the African or world stage, there are artists from Nigeria and South Africa who are good at those music styles.So, it is important to utilise our cultures to come up with unique music flavours that can stand out on the globe arena. I have been there before and I know what big festivals or international audiences want to hear. They want to appreciate authentic sounds from Malawi.”
He added that the global awards such as Grammys also look for authenticity when nominating music videos.
Faith also revealed his plans to retire from recording and performing music to concentrate on music entrepreneurship.
“When I retire from active stage performances soon, I will focus my energy on music business, management and related disciplines,” said the 39-year-old musician.
Commenting on Faith Mussa’s music legacy in the country, gospel musician Khama Khwiliro said he has an inspiring story.
“While looking up to other established musicians, Faith Mussa was such a wonderful young guitarist to watch and follow in Mussa Family while we were young.
“I am happy to see him attaining a global recognition, because he is an international star,” said Khwiliro.
