Jah Prayzah will not perform at the Jacaranda Music Festival tonight. The singer and the festival both confirmed it on Friday 2 October, hours before gates were due to open on the first night at Thornpark Polo Club in Harare. Takura and an act billed as The Legends have been added to the Friday lineup, and the festival says the rest of the weekend goes ahead as planned.
What the two statements say
Jah Prayzah announced the withdrawal on his Facebook page. He said he and 3G The Band would not be able to perform, and gave the reason as a recent tragedy and loss that had deeply affected him and his whole team. In his words, they are "simply not in a position to go on stage at this time."
He did not name Wicknell Chivayo in the post, but the timing leaves little doubt about what he meant. Chivayo and his wife, Lucy Muteke, died on Wednesday 30 September when a helicopter came down in the Marondera area, killing all six people on board, TimesLIVE reported. The cause has not been established.
He also asked his fans not to stay away. He thanked the festival team for their understanding and urged everyone who had planned to attend to still go and support the event.
The festival's own notice was more guarded. It said organisers had been in close contact with his management and had explored every possible avenue to keep him on the bill, before concluding that he could not perform "due to circumstances beyond our control". It apologised to ticket holders, confirmed that The Legends and Takura had been added, and said gates open at 18:00.
Neither statement mentions refunds or ticket exchanges for people who bought a Friday ticket to see him.
Why this one hit so close
Jah Prayzah was among the people closest to Chivayo in the music industry, and one of the biggest recipients of his gifts. We set out those figures in our piece on what Chivayo put into the arts.
The festival is the second thing he has called off this week. On Thursday he postponed his wedding, which had been planned for Saturday 3 October in Glen Lorne, according to The Herald. NewZimbabwe.com quoted him saying Chivayo "was more than a friend to us", and reported that Thomas Mapfumo had flown into the country to perform at the celebration the day before the crash.
So the artist who was meant to open a three day festival on Friday and get married on Saturday is instead in mourning, along with his band.
Who is stepping in
Takura, billed by the festival as "The Shona Prince", is the named replacement. Born Takura Bernard Shonhai in Masvingo, he came up through the R&B duo Soul Afrika before going solo, and according to Zim Profiles he broke through with "Zino Irema", followed by the 2016 EP "Stripped" and the 2018 album "Someone Had To Do It". He brings a younger, urban contemporary crowd, a different audience from the one Jah Prayzah draws.
The festival has not said who The Legends are, and we could not confirm the act's lineup before publishing.
They join a Friday bill that already had Tamy Moyo, The Travellers Band, Andile Brown, DJ Young Vibes and BRZE.
What it means for the festival
Friday was built around one name. Zimsphere's preview called Jah Prayzah arguably the best musician in the country and sold the opening night on the strength of its local live acts. Greedysouth's Tafadzwa Madzika was less convinced when the lineup came out, writing that Friday felt like it "got the short end of the stick" and needed one more big name. That was with Jah Prayzah on the poster.
Losing him on the day, with gate prices at their highest (US$40 general access and US$60 VIP since 1 October, according to Zimsphere), is a real test for the organisers. Replacing him within hours, and saying so publicly before gates opened, is about as well as a festival can handle it. Saturday and Sunday, which carry the international acts, are not affected.
The wider point reaches past one weekend. Chivayo's death has already taken a wedding, a set of Thomas Mapfumo shows and now a festival headline slot off the calendar. Promoters with Jah Prayzah on upcoming bills will be watching for word on when he returns to the stage, and he has not given a date.
Full festival details, including the updated lineup and ticket prices, are on our Jacaranda Music Festival 2026 event page.
Sources
- Chivayo was more than a friend, says Jah Prayzah as he postpones wedding, NewZimbabwe.com
- Jah Prayzah's wedding postponed indefinitely, The Herald
- Zimbabwean businessman Wicknell Chivayo, close to ruling elite, killed in helicopter crash, TimesLIVE
- Jacaranda Music Festival 2026: Harare's biggest October weekend is here, Zimsphere
- What we love (and not so much) about the 2026 Jacaranda Music Festival lineup, Greedysouth
- Takura "Shona Prince" biography, Zim Profiles
- Statements posted on Facebook by Jah Prayzah and the Jacaranda Music Festival, 2 October 2026
