THE TRIBE

The Tribe Exclusive – Damara Dikding

Singer-songwriter and one-third of the Matongo Family music group, Damara Dikding left the music scene for more than seven years to focus on other projects. Fortunately for his fans, he is back with more music and joins The Tribe Exclusive to tell us all about it. He also shares the reasons for his music break, the personal journeys he undertook during his time around and what the future looks like for him.

Tell us about the personal challenges that you faced during your time away from the music business?

I faced loss, I was grieving and was not dealing with things head-on. That affected my work.

What kind of safe spaces do artists need to deal with challenges such as depression?

I would appreciate it if we had people who can counsel artists. Artists need more support because they also contribute to our society.

Within the industry, it’s not really easy for people to talk to someone. It takes a certain kind of strength to talk to people.

How do your social responsibility projects help you give back to your community?

I volunteer for Standard Bank’s Bright initiative where we visit schools to counsel learners and teachers. Through mentoring I also help youngsters who love music and encourage them to shoot for their dreams.

Everybody is excited about your next project. What caused the delay in releasing it?

Covid happened and I didn’t have control over anything, and also the timing was not right. So I had to put it on hold.

What is the message behind the single titled Namibia?

I wanted to make a statement to say that we have such a beautiful country. We’re always looking for acceptance with our music, so this is a statement that we need to start seeing ourselves before others start seeing us. Being Namibian is not about a tribe, it’s a mentality. Once you exclude certain people, Namibia is not going to strive. So I just want to promote unity and patriotism with this song.

Follow Damara Dikding on social media @damara_dikding

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