How Great Angels shot to stardom

It is not by fluke that the Great Angels Choir have sold over 40 000 copies of Mwasankha Ine DVD in three weeks after the DVD’s first launch in Blantyre on December 6 2015.

It cannot be by chance that its CD, first launched on January 1 2015, has sold 145 000 copies to this day.

And how about the patronage the group commands?

For the CD launch shows in Blantyre, Lilongwe, Mzuzu, Zomba and Balaka, total patronage as per gate collections is estimated at 16 000.

Such huge patronage compelled the choir to move away from closed halls in favour of open places to accommodate more people for their DVD launch shows.

Specifically, it was gripping to note that on the eventful March 29 2015 at Robin’s Park in Blantyre where patronage was estimated at over 5 000, six people fainted due to limited breathing space.

The BAT Ground DVD launch attracted 6 000 patrons, whereas 17 400 fans attended all their four shows across the country.

In the four-album history of the choir, these figures are unprecedented, says the choir’s music director Ephraim Zonda.

The choir’s previous album, Ndiyende Bwanji, has sold a mere 30 000 CDs since its release in 2010. The album, which was the highest selling before Mwasankha Ine, has sold 150 000 copies of its DVD.

“As it is now, Mwasankha Ine is our highest selling album. In three weeks it has already sold over 40 000 copies of its DVD which has never happened before to our albums.

“With time, we expect the album to sell more copies than any of our albums,” says Zonda.

Why has the choir been a hit overnight?

Zonda attributes the success to God.

“We involved God to lead in the production of the album,” he says.

But listening to their fourth album, which comes after Mundifungatire (2005), Gwireni Dzanja (2007) and Ndiyende Bwanji, the choir has improved tremendously in themes, lyrics, instrumentation and overall harmony of the songs.

The DVD is even much better in conceptualisation, setting, costume, execution and picture quality, giving a glimpse of just how much the choir has invested.

“We have invested K3 million in the production of the DVD. This money has been spent on things like transport, costume, shooting venues and DVD production,” he said.

Real recognise real, so they say. The more you invest, the more the dividends, they add. Great Angels attest to such popular sayings.

“At our first launch show in Blantyre, we sold over 10 000 copies of the DVD. That show alone returned our investment,” says Zonda.

“Our advice to musicians is that they should invest more if they want quality work. In addition, they should take time to prepare when holding shows; let’s say two months prior to the actual day.”

That is how Great Angels Choir is a sought after commodity today.n