Listen2Youth

Changemaker: Jermain Ndhlovu

Listen2Youth is a community media project that uses the arts to give youth a voice and allowing them to be social commentators on issues affecting society. I organized artists to create a compilation of their advocacy to distribute to youth groups.

15 artists were headhunted from their experience in social and protest artistry to come up with works that could be featured in the DVD compilation. The artists were varying in genres, ranging from slam poets and singers. There was a photographer and a painter who had their portfolio’s featuring to add visual art to the compilation. The artists tacked a range of issues from poverty, HIV/AIDS, unemployment, gender based violence, adequate shelter amongst other aspirations, hopes and experience of being young people. The final cut of the recordings makes up the finished product and 200 DVDs were distributed through youth groups in Zimbabwe for FREE! This is in a country where there is no private broadcasting media and a free Listen2Youth makes local content accessible and affordable to the wider public who need alternative media.

The project succeeded in being alternative media for unbiased and neutral local content which reached over 300 people. The belief is that for each DVD issued at least one other or more persons got to see it as well. The project further diversified and improved on the featured artists profiles.