Following the release of her visuals for the single Tsubvubone which urges the black child to proudly embrace their skin, Afro-jazz musician Hope Masike has castigated celebrities and artistes for promoting skin lightening.
Skin lightening is increasingly popular in Zimbabwe, especially as images of celebrities are more frequently on display. Fans of skin bleaching say a fair complexion is more appealing than dark skin, and that fair-skinned people even have more opportunities due to their appearance.
However, skin lightening, also known as skin bleaching, has its fair share of controversy as it has sparked a lot of debate with some saying it is a sin, some saying it is illegal and some saying it is dangerous.
In an interview with H-Metro, Masike said:
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| Black Is Beautiful: Hope Masike Speaks Against Bleaching Celebrities |
“My hope is that this song neutralises this and gives a fresh, exciting take on what true beauty is,” said Masike.
Masike has revealed that her latest video – Tsubvubone – is receiving a positive response from the fans who have embraced her message.
Masike also said there is a lot of love towards the video as many resonate with its message and there had been a lot of songs about yellow bones and very few if any about the dark-skinned people too.
“My favourite comments so far are from husbands who are who are dedicating Tsubvubone to their dark-skinned wives to affirm how beautiful their other halves are to them,” she said
The Afro-jazz musician says identity is one of the major factors connected to success in the arts industry as she pointed out where she got the inspiration to come up with Tsubvubone.
Masike said her song is not enough to enlighten the dark-skinned people about their colour, and therefore believes the art industry has a huge role to play.
