It was episode six of Clash of the Choirs and no one had left, until now. It was quite a sweet thing that Sis’ Rebecca decided to save all the choirs for another week, but this past weekend the lot fell on Simphiwe Dana to leave.
All choirs tried their best, but some were obviously better than others. Kudos to the wardrobe team which has been dressing these people every week, immaculately. They really looked good. And now to dissecting Sunday’s episode.
THE ACE OF THE WEEK
This is tricky because the competition was tough. Although Robbie Malinga did so well in the pop theme, other acts like Moneoa and HHP were equally impressive. So there is no one team for this.
THEY BARELY MADE IT
Tshedi’s gang really did not do much to that Toni Braxton and Babyface song Hurt You. It is a ballad that is rooted in the 1990s New Jack Swing type of R&B, and so to sing that in a choral arrangement was ambitious. It sounded good, but Tshedi did not add or remove anything, making it sound like something you can produce from an app on your phone. Thank goodness Ziyon and Simphiwe were worse, otherwise it would have been a disaster for her. On a brighter note, it was really cool for her to sponsor the regalia that had her name on it, for her team. That’s teamwork and inspiration.
LIKE, WHAT WAS THAT ABOUT?
Simphiwe Dana’s Eastern Cape gang did not really push it at all. You would think that after a demise, the award-winning singer would have tightened her shoelaces. Obviously, her being an amazing artist did not rub off on the kids in her choir. It may also have to do with her meek personality. It is hard to conduct a bunch of people when you do not have an authoritative persona. She will be missed.
JUDGE’S NOTE
Last week it was a bit confusing to see whether the judges were really ready to go out there to bite the choirmasters. You need to remember that after the show is done, any given judge will still have to face a choirmaster. So the judges need to tone down. However, this assessment is wrong considering the judges were as blunt as Simon Cowell on a bad day. Mkhize really went for Dana with no fear, saying he didn’t like the performance.
DYING KICKS ROULETTE
Every week the bottom two choirs get two minutes to prepare a given song, and yesterday the song was Drake’s Hold On I’m Coming Home.
Ziyon’s people aced the performance by changing the lyrics from “I’m going home” to “We’re NOT going home”. By the time Dana’s pack was ready to respond, it was obvious that the judges had already made up their minds.
THE ROAD AHEAD
So far the top contenders are obviously Robbie Malinga, Shugasmakx and HHP. Malinga is using his years of experience to outdo everyone else. He sometimes misses a step and then he just pulls a sound that is infectious. Everyone seems to forget his mistake. Shugasmakx has an eye on the actual performance and so he gets slightly carried away. HHP is always presenting something new.
• Clash of the Choirs Season 2 on Mzansi Magic, (DStv Channel 161) every Sunday at 5.30pm.