{"id":6831,"date":"2025-05-12T11:44:23","date_gmt":"2025-05-12T11:44:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/?p=6831"},"modified":"2025-05-12T11:44:39","modified_gmt":"2025-05-12T11:44:39","slug":"chivayos-lavish-gifts-to-jah-prayzah-approach-us1-million-mark","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/?p=6831","title":{"rendered":"Chivayo&#8217;s Lavish Gifts to Jah Prayzah Approach US$1 Million Mark"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Innocent Sibonginkosi Ncube<br>Zim GBC reporter<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Controversial businessman Wicknell Chivayo has reportedly gifted award-winning musician Jah Prayzah nearly US$1 million in luxury vehicles and cash, cementing their high-profile relationship that continues to spark debate about money, politics and art in Zimbabwe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A History of Extravagant Gifts<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The flamboyant ZANU-PF financier&#8217;s generosity toward the musician began in 2017 when he purchased the first copy of Jah Prayzah&#8217;s politically-charged album Kutonga Kwaro for US$10,000, while giving the artist&#8217;s wife an additional US$2,000 cash gift.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The gifting spree escalated dramatically in recent years:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>January 2023: Mercedes-Benz S500 (US$180,000)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>December 2024: Toyota Aqua for Jah Prayzah&#8217;s son, US$20,000 cash, plus four Toyota Aquas for dancers (US$40,000 total)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>May 2025: Range Rover Autobiography (US$200,000+) and US$150,000 cash<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;This is about appreciating art that aligns with our revolutionary values,&#8221; Chivayo said when gifting the Mercedes in 2023.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Political Patronage or Artistic Support?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While several artists including Seh Calaz, Sandra Ndebele and Alick Macheso have received Chivayo&#8217;s gifts, Jah Prayzah remains the primary beneficiary \u2013 a fact that hasn&#8217;t gone unnoticed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Political analyst Tendai Toto observed:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;This isn&#8217;t mere philanthropy. There&#8217;s clear symbiosis \u2013 the musician gets luxury, the party gets cultural validation through popular art.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Jah Prayzah, known for songs praising President Mnangagwa and ZANU-PF, hasn&#8217;t commented on the gifts&#8217; cumulative value. However, his manager Keen Mushapaidze acknowledged:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;Corporate sponsors appreciate talent. These gestures help artists focus on their craft.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Mixed Public Reactions<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The spectacle has divided opinion:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Supporters argue it boosts Zimbabwe&#8217;s arts sector<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Critics decry it as political co-option of culture<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;Why doesn&#8217;t this generosity extend to struggling musicians without political connections?&#8221; questioned Harare-based arts activist Rudo Moyo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With estimates placing total gifts between US$662,000-$1 million, and insiders hinting at more to come, this controversial relationship shows no signs of slowing down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Zim GBC News\u00a9\ufe0f<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Innocent Sibonginkosi NcubeZim GBC reporter Controversial businessman Wicknell Chivayo has reportedly gifted award-winning musician Jah Prayzah nearly US$1 million in luxury vehicles and cash, cementing their high-profile relationship that continues&hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6832,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6831","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6831","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6831"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6831\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6833,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6831\/revisions\/6833"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/6832"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6831"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6831"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6831"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}