Popular local satire show, Zambezi News will launch a new season this month end with another expected in the next few months.
This will be the first time Zambezi News producers Magamba Network has released two seasons in a year since its inception in 2011.
Magamba Network director who also stars in the series as Jerome Weathers, Samm Monro aka Cde Fatso said, “We will be launching season four this month and we have finished shooting season five so it will be a year filled with Zambezi News satire.”
Pre-empting season four, Cde Fatso said there are additional characters and two more news casters joining the panel cast that includes Michael K and Outspoken who play Kudzaishe Mushayahembe and Mandape Mandape respectively.
“We don’t want to give away much about who is in the new season but I can hint that the Even More Lil Swaggerly Boys (EMLSB) have a collaboration with a Zimbabwean artist who is based in the UK that will be featuring on season four talking about the diaspora and the diaspora life,” he said.
Other additions to lookout for include a new scenic newsroom. Cde Fatso said, “We shot at the top of Joina City with a beautiful view of the whole of Harare city scape.”
The series has previously relied on TV and online platforms such as Facebook and YouTube for distribution. This time around they plan to add even more proactive approaches. “This season is going to be about making sure we get clips out on Whatsapp, sharing them en masse in Zimbabwe and we will also consider other distribution models,” added Cde Fatso.
Commenting on the growth of comedy and satire, Cde Fatso lamented that there was no political satire to talk about when they started out with Zambezi News. Six years on, the genre is flooded with great initiatives that speak on important issues, notably online content producers such as Busstop TV, PO Box Reloaded and newer upstarts like Madhorofiya Republic.
“It great to see that we have been part of this growth and inspiring a new generation of satirists, comedians and content creators that use their art to speak truth to power; I think that’s very important,” said Cde Fatso. “I think it also managed to open up a lot of space for dialogue keeping young people engaged in real political issues.”
Zambezi News season four was expected to have been released earlier in the year but faced some post production delays. “We are happy with the final product and I think it going to get people laughing,” said Cde Fatso.
