Interview with UK based singer/songwriter /entrepreneur ELAKA

 Ethel “Elaka” Gondwe is a singer ,songwriter and entrepreneur .  We recently had an interview with her ;

KAPA187:   Who is Elaka?

ELAKA: Elaka is a singer/songwriter and actress, a lover of art and the arts. I am passionate about what I do and my heritage, I am a very proud Zambian; I think I even irritate people on how much I love being Zambian lol

KAPA187:   I assume you started singing at a young age .what was your motivation to get serious about music?

ELAKA:  Yes I did start singing at a young age, I was part of my school choir, but I suffered from low self-esteem and so I did not tell people for a long time that I wanted to sing professionally. My turning point I would say happened when I entered an inter-house school competition and it was myself, singing an ensemble with another girl and a pianist to accompany us, I actually choked and eventually got into it and sung my part. We did not win the competition cause of my hesitation to start my part however, it was very well received by teachers and my peers and that is when I realized that I could do it. When I completed high school however I never pursued music and was set to just focus on College and University but then I lost not one but two sisters one year after another they were 20 and 27 and I realized that life is way too short not to follow your dreams. As well as Whitney Houston, Dolly Parton, Mariah Carey and the likes being my inspirations, my motivation was the death of my sisters.

KAPA187: You have performed with a number of Zambian and international acts, how has that influenced your artistry?

ELAKA:  It has influenced me in so many ways, stage performance, vocal projection, song writing and image and branding as an artist, I have learnt a lot and taken it on board. More importantly it has influenced me to stay true to myself in the songs I write. People sometimes focus too much on vocals and they forget why people decide to pursue music in the first place, because for me it is about the song, music is universal, and from watching and performing with other artists I have learned that if they can help my life with just that one song or that amazing performance, then if I can help someone else out there, even if it’s just one person, with my song(s) then I have lived my dream.

KAPA187:    Tell us about your song “My Africa”, how did it come about and what was the concept of the video.

ELAKA:  My Africa, was originally written as My Zambia, the original melody I wrote the song to was the drop leaf rhythm from Jamaica, I love that rhythm which had over 12 artists write lyrics to the same beat, and I thought that was amazing that one song can be turned into different songs just by the different lyrics and different artistic flairs, and I remember hearing artists like Jah Cure have such captivating lyrics which made me feel compelled to write something to the song and the first thing that entered my mind was My Zambia and the melody just fell in with it. My lyrics were inspired through a situation where I was experiencing a communication breakdown with my family back home, and it was appearing as though things were amazingly glamorous for me here whilst things were not so great back home. So I wanted to relay a message that basically says I might be here but I am still there for you, sometimes im unable to help out with certain situations but that does not mean that I have forgotten and im not still trying to help. It changed to My Africa as it came to light that many are found in my type of position who are far from family and friends and can relate to what I am talking about, so I thought it best to broaden it for them too.

The video’s script was written by Nord Graham Car, the concept was to get into my head and the turmoil of remembering home whilst living this supposed westernized lifestyle with my friends; you see what appears to be the younger me watching my every move, and I find myself in a forest that crosses between going home to try and help the ones I left behind and straddling the two worlds as I toss and turn in bed. So it pretty much goes back and forth on that concept.

KAPA187:   Apart from music you are also an entrepreneur, what inspired you to take the risk of starting your own business as opposed to working for someone.

ELAKA: Yes I am an entrepreneur, I am from a blue collar background, my parents worked hard and established themselves pretty well when I was growing up so a business structure is not new to me so I studied for a BA Hons degree at Westminster University, as I have always known that I needed to have a business or two where I can invest my money in when I make money from my music. I eventually ventured into starting my business as I could no longer straddle working for someone else and putting in those hours for them and having time to complete my own projects, it was one or the other, that and the fact that I don’t think I like being told what to do anymore lol

KAPA187:   Tell us about your company Effycom Productions

ELAKA: Effycom Productions I founded in 2008 when I was working for a record label, I was the manager and managing everything around the office. So with that I improved my skill set on the music industry, and developed a great network within the industry. I also spent time doing a lot of research before I embarked on pushing the company forward. I created the company as a means of helping other artists as it was not easy for me to find the right information and find the right people to showcase myself when I was starting off, I wanted to give people the opportunities that were not available to me when I was starting out. Today I am happy to say that I have established that foundation that can assist other artists, and I have expanded it into others within the entertainment industry so I help models, actors, designers, dancers etc. Effycom Productions is a record label, management company and also specializes in graphic design, event promotions, PR, branding, marketing and general consultancy, and through the hard work I put into the company it has earned 4 award nominations and winning two, one being a BEFFTA Award under Best Event Promoter 2010 and a UKZAMBIANS Excellence award under Promoter of the year 2012. I have previously managed UK artists, Strictly D, Dawn May, Sheya and Zambian based Zone Fam and Roberto. I am currently managing UK Based artist Ivy-May, myself as Elaka and I have signed Zambian based artists Ruff Kid, Paul Da’Prince, DJ Len and Nana. I also have two models signed to Effycom who are based in Zambia, Claudia Zimba and Wika Kawina. My company has been contracted to coordinate shows for big companies like SBTV, and Channel AKA and established a great working relationship with individuals at companies like MTV UK/Base Africa, MNET,  Channel O, BEN TV, VoxAfrica TV, Sony BMG, Universal and the list goes on.

KAPA187:   What challenges have you faced in your company?

ELAKA: The challenges like all businesses are plenty, I have had clients not pay for the work they hired my company for, I have had artists going diva on me, I have suffered great loses when events go pear shape unexpectedly, but I would not trade that for anything, because that is how as a business we learn and grow and improve, I find it to be a wonderful experience. Even the fortune 5 companies experience setbacks, as far as I am concerned I am only just getting started, there is plenty of room for improvement.

KAPA187:   You also have a clothing line, what style of clothes do you offer and what sets them apart from other designs.

ELAKA: My clothing line is called ElHry clothing, my line is an extension of myself and expressing myself through clothing. I think what sets mine apart from the rest is my love for colour and my boldness to experiment with and go with what my gut feels like. My non-conformist attitude to life allows me the creativity to come up with the different patterns that people can enjoy wearing.

KAPA187:    What is Queen of Zambia UK about?

ELAKA: Queen Of Zambia UK is a beauty pageant that aims to promote beauty with a purpose. I established Queen Of Zambia UK as a means of getting the girls based here in touch with their roots. I grew up in the UK, but I was fortunate enough to hold on to my roots and heritage and I can still speak Nyanja and Bemba, and I discovered that there are plenty of young women who have been here a while and do not seem to remember or know much about Zambia and its culture. So the pageant is there to get the girls to learn about our cuisine, our cultural backgrounds and tribes so that people around the world can know more about Zambia. The pageant is a not for profit organization so one of the other aims for it is to help the needy in Zambia, it is still growing but I am hoping in time it will make a difference for those that are suffering in Zambia. We have established communication with The Flip Flop Compassionate who are a Zambian based charity, whom we are working on creating greater awareness for the charity so that they can help more children and young people in gaining skills for life. (You can contact them to offer donations in terms of money, food, clothing or facilities by visiting their facebook page via this link https://www.facebook.com/pages/Flip-Flop-Compassionate-Zambia/393893450657255?fref=ts )

KAPA187:   How do you manage your time among all your ventures?

ELAKA: The beauty of having your own business is that you have no one to answer to and your time is yours, so making time for all my projects even if not easy requires me to really coordinate my schedule, I tend to multi task a lot that way I get more than one thing completed at the same time. I have late nights and early mornings so that part is rather wild but I am used to it now. I also have interns that assist me from time to time so it allows me to meet necessary deadlines.

KAPA187:   Is music something you see yourself doing 10 years from now or will you concentrates on building your businesses

ELAKA: I still see myself practicing both music and my business in 10 years from now, and as my business is within the same industry the two go hand in hand, my music supports my business and my business supports my music so it is a win win situation.

KAPA187:   What words of encouragement do you have to other Zambians especially woman about being an entrepreneur.

ELAKA: To my fellow Zambians, I say do not let anyone first of all tell you that you cannot achieve anything. If you have a dream and are willing to work hard at it, you need to go for it, the road is not guaranteed to be a sooth one, but nothing good comes easy. Make sure you put in your research,  read study books on your chosen business, or take classes or attend seminars and workshops, talk to people ask questions and really put in the time and effort to secure your business. More importantly Zambia being one of the only few countries in Africa that has never been war torn, let us show our unity in supporting one another, that is how we grow as  a people and as a nation.

THE MUSIC

MY AFRICA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Picd1fqSPY0

ELHTY  CLOTHING

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By Kapa187