This week we had the chance to sit down, discuss and learn from rising Music mogul Diana Elisha Nheera. She has done a lot of phenomenal work in the music industry from being Nutty O’s famous manager to working with legends such as ExQ. Enjoy the conversation!
So where did Diana Nheera grow up?
I was raised by families headed by a Teacher (maternal Grandad – Teacher Samson) and a Headmaster (My Dad) So that meant growing up in different communities in Forrester schools in Mvurwi and Chiweshe rural for Primary School, mission school was also in Howard, Chiweshe before going to Seke, Chitungwiza and eventually staying in Belvedere and going to Girls High School Harare for A’Level. I literally grew up in all societal model communities and places
You’re an IT trained graduate. Is it something you grew up wanting to become or you fell into it?
I can’t quite say I WANTED to become IT trained, tho i got exposure from form 1 as Computers were a compulsory subject. After A’Level i really wanted to venture into Food Science, which i had undertaken as one of my subjects for lower and upper six… At the Polytechnic i had found a place however, the only option was Hospitality, so my uncle Ronald Munatsi sat me down and advised me on how IT made better sense in the digital era that everything was growing into… I checked it out, and decided since i was there to learn, i would go with IT and ace it, i had done ICDL in my gap year too, so that became my foundation to the exciting world of Information Technology.
What influenced you to become a digital marketer?
Digital Marketing came as a need for stable income. I was doing well as a self-taught and trained Graphic Designer and Photographer, but these were mostly periodic jobs where i got more work at the beginning of the year, for church calendar resources, and then the random branding, birthday, wedding, event invites, posters and greeting cards. It would mean some cool bag in some months and scarcity in other months, painful way to live. I thus reinvented my portfolio and rebranded as a Digital Marketeer, targeting SMEs and engaging on a monthly retainer. Creatively it was a welcome challenge and more of channeling energy i was already using to play on social media onto more meaningful use and most importantly helping other people achieve their business goals and learning in the process. I also liked that i would begin to get paid for the side consultation i would freely give my Graphic Design Clients before…
Do you think women are well represented in the field of digital marketing?
Women are well represented in Digital Marketing, yes, the profession has historically fallen on the soft skills side alongside other office ‘admin’ jobs said to be for females. It may be in the other complimenting skills such as Graphic Design, Photography, Copy writing, Typography, Videography, etc that previously women shied from, but lately, the genders are balancing out in competitively occupying the spaces and churning out super results same way…
What do you think about Zimbabwe’s marketing landscape in general?
The Zimbabwe Marketing landscape seems to be demarcated into two, traditional marketing(however this can best be described) and the seemingly unconventional digital marketing which has significantly grown over the years. In most institutions there seems to be a push pull relationship between the old school and the new school, which compromises on the quality of marketing campaigns most of the time. Also quite fascinating is the influx of INFLUENCER MARKETING campaigns anchored around public personalities in the Arts and Entertainment sector. We have over the past 5-10years witnessed quite a number of hits and misses in these efforts across board… What with the controversial opportune viral content marketing which has served a lot more cringeworthy content than kudos-worthy marketing… It’s a conundrum.
How did you get into artist management?
Artist Management invited me over 😂😂 Well, upon relocating back home to Zimbabwe from South Africa, a formal job was not easy to come by, I actually spent 10months in 2017 sending applications and attending job interviews… I was already a Freelance Graphic Designer and Digital Marketeer, so on interaction with some creatives i would get a number of requests to Manage them, and i would frankly decline Because i did not know much about Music. It was young Vannel and Kent who managed to convince me to give it a try… and being one to not shy away from a Challenge, I made a deal with the pair that I would show them the ropes on business (branding and marketing) and they would show me the ropes on Music(the technical, industry and their experience in Zim music.) I knew that we would figure it out and that i would grow their brands the same way i did with my corporate clients, no doubt. I also thought it would be just a touch and go for me, little did I know that i had ventured into what is now a significant part of my career. I still work with Vannel and we have evolved together and maneuvered the dynamics of the music profession over the years. It’s amazing to see.
How did you LinkUp with Nutty O?
My first encounter with Nutty O, besides hearing his music of coz, was when we invited him and his Manager Byron Kabaira for a ZimDancehall Summit we were organizing and hosting in winter 2018. It was the beginning of a phenomenal relationship between his Manager and I, both professionally and personally. I officially joined the team in my capacity as a Branding and Marketing hand later that year. I was quite moved by how a young man from our own Mbare had such insightful and transformational translation of our day to day issues and experience into lyrics and melody. I remember asking if he had ever lived outside of Zimbabwe, and he hadn’t, I was in awe. Then I got to know of his journey and Byron’s contribution, the vision, the mission, what had been done and achieved, it was mind blowing, the more i hung around them, the more they shared, the more I learnt and so I dedicated to partake in making the dreams, goals, targets and tackling every growth opportunity on the way by committing my own skills set to the disposal of the team. I carried my camera around to document a lot of activity around the artist, small and big alike, I gave consultation on Digital Marketing, sometimes unsolicited 😂😂 I also made sure to share about him and his work to my network, people had to know about this gift to the nation and talent, and since I had become family, it all became part of my life to be on call any day any time.
Most people think that being an artist manager means you are just responsible for running your artists’ errands (or carrying the artist’s equipment (jokes lol)). What forms your day to day tasks as a manager?
LOL, being an Artist Manager to me means managing the Artist’s brand. It means teamwork: being responsible and accountable for each other between myself and the Artist, as well as the rest of the team. We have a code of conduct, values and principles to adhere to just like any other professional organization.
On the day to day business my tasks include:
- Liaising with Team Members on tasks, reports, calendar, enquiries, publishing content on social platforms, and any issues that may arise.
- Liaising with our Clientelle: Fans, Partners, Clients: Corporate, Individual, Promoters, Schools, etc
- Generating content for our always on calendar on our Digital platforms – liaison with Creatives doing Graphic Design, Photography, Videography, Copywriting and on certain projects – Stylists, Dancers, Fashion Designers etc
- Managing performances logistics and band(rehearsals, payments, requirements)
- Any business that arises, workshops, speaking events, Artist’s extra-curricular activities where we all need to support and find brand opportunities- in my camp there is soccer, martial arts, etc
- Liaising with teams: Production, Publishing, Finance, A&R, Security, Performance, and the Management Team itself… Attending meetings, physical and virtually, liaising with record labels contacts and and and
- Liaising with Media – Radio, TV, Newspapers, Bloggers, Magazines, and social media audience at large… Including phone calls, emails, instant messages across platforms
😂😂😂😂 this is a full job spec… In between we always check on each other, health, mind space, family… basically what’s happening in each other’s lives and updating on the things that may affect work… tunyeya nyeya and just commenting on what’s happening around us in the industry and in the country. Flagging persons and activities of interest for attention and so we constantly feed from each other’s scope and network…
Are there any challenges that you face in your work as a manager?
Many challenges everyday, it’s a big machine with many moving pieces, some within our control, some without our control. It’s from securing funds enough to produce the desired quality of work, market in all possible spaces, get the work we aspire(performances/corporate engagements) to get as a team and most daunting dealing with NOs that come our way and disappoitments of performances and deals that may not go to plan for one reason or another. I call them growing pains, necessary but painful either way, they also present alternative ways to achieve and so the never ending pursuit of growth is realised…
What is your experience on the relationship between Artists and the corporate world?
I have had an opportunity to get a glimpse of this when i worked in Ad Agency in SA, and it looked like a bed of roses as big exciting project campaigns would be formulated accompanied by big figures flying across the boardroom tables, both in reach and in the monies… In my reality tho here in Zim 😂😂 it’s a totally tall task from getting to the point where an Artist is even considered workable with, to getting the right kind of figures spoken, let alone paid. A lot of dreams are crushed on the way, some creative concepts suffer miscarriage or worse still birth… There is still some way to go to where the relationship between Artist and Corporate aligns on a value level. I pray to see a day where MUTUAL VALUE is acknowledged, Mutual respect, thus Mutual benefit with meaningful DEVELOPMENTAL relationship where the Corporate gains in collaboration of realizing their marketing efforts with Artist and Artist fully benefiting in turn from the remuneration in both financial and supportive compensation for their work. Getting certain resources should be easier as a given when in a relationship with a whole corporation. The value chain becomes more meaningful and smoother when both parties are giving 100% to their side of the pipe.
Let’s say I’m an upcoming artist. Why is it important for me to get a manager?
As an upcoming artist it’s important to have a manager or Management Team so as to have human resource(s) dedicated to the business side of the craft, allowing you to focus fully on the creative and to be a professional buffer between you and the members of the environment (clients, fans, partners and markets)
Do Zimbabwean artists take managers seriously? Do they listen to their advice at all?
It’s an individual thing and depending on one’s teaching on the subject as well as experience. It can be a case of the unknowns theory… Known Knowns, Known Unknowns, Unknown Knowns and Unknown Unknowns 😂 Better respect, knowledge, appreciation(understanding) of the role and importance of both Artist and Manager capacities as self and the other part is what can yield better results.
Let’s say I want to become an artist manager, where do I start?
Start on GOOGLE… Finding out the role and job spec of an Artist Manager, Articulately list your strengths as per your skills set, get mentorship (directly or indirectly(by studying from afar) from existing Managers, Understand the Artist, their Talent, discipline, aspirations, vision and as an individual then get in contract with a clear plan and expected deliverables plus the remuneration thereof… Get on the work, learn, grow, HAVE FUN AT IT 😉
What can we look forward to from you? Any upcoming projects?
Plenty New music coming this year from all the artists i work with – Vannel, AD Terry(Nigeria), Nutty O, as well as our ExQ and many other projects i am consulted on. It’s always EXCITING looking ahead!!!
What’s your advice to any young ones out there who want to get into artist management?
I never dreamt I would be an Artist Manager and it was not on my horizon 5years ago… But look at God, look at the turn of events!!! So, keep your heart open to new opportunities and your mind ready to learn. All we are doing now has been done before, so, do take a leaf from the page of those who have learned ahead of you, customise and apply to your own journey, apply full interest in your specific environment and you will see all the leads and opportunities to lead and grow as an Artist Manager. Research, Apply, Grow. Enjoy!
