GIVING CREDIT WHERE IT'S DUE: What Sampa The Great is teaching the Zambian music industry

Credits on the song

LET'S be honest for a moment. When an artist releases a brilliant music video, where does our attention usually go? Albeit straight to the star on the mic, and sometimes maybe the producer who made the beat if we're feeling extra nerdy, and that’s about it.

For the longest time, the creative ecosystem behind the lens has functioned like an invisible village sweating through long hours, busy sorting equipment, adjusting lights, making the magic happen, and only to vanish into the shadows when the credits roll.

That is why I’ve found myself deeply intrigued and impressed by what Sampa The Great has been doing it.

A few days back, while re-watching her video for Simon Says, I noticed that familiar, meticulous attention to detail. Then, just today, she dropped another masterpiece from her upcoming album Nu Zamrock, the visuals for Shutdown The Streets of Lusaka. And there it was again: an exhaustive, beautifully organised breakdown in the description of the video, giving explicit credit to everyone who brought the project to life.

Guys! We are talking about proper attribution here - down to the last detail: Creative Direction, D.O.P. Geo Musiwa, production assistants, camera operators like Chawana Muyembi and Isaac Tuba, location sound technicians, logistics teams, makeup artists, stylists, the live band rocking out on keys and drums, the entire cast, and even official shoutouts to institutions like the Zambia Police Service and the Lusaka City Council albeit for making it possible to film the video at the Manda Hill foot bridge, and temporary disturbing the flow of traffic.

It is a masterclass in respect. And quite frankly, it’s very refreshing to see.

Locally, you can count the artistes who pull this off on one hand. Aside from a few exceptions within that creative family circle, like her cousin Tio Nason, who also brings that same high level of professional intentionality to his art, detailed production credits remain an outlier rather than the standard.

As someone who has spent years observing, documenting, and writing about entertainment, you realise that an audiovisual project is never a one person show. When behind-the-scenes creatives are left unnamed, they lose out on portfolio currency, professional validation, and the simple dignity of seeing their hard work recognised on the big stage.

While the exact mechanics of how this impacts royalties and complex publishing split sheets can sometimes be a whole different ballgame, having these meticulous production notes creates an invaluable paper trail for awards, future sync licensing, and professional networking.

SAMPA The Great

If the Zambian entertainment industry and creative economy wants to truly grow up and compete on a continental and global stage, our production culture has to catch up. Crediting shouldn't be treated as an afterthought or an optional courtesy.

Sampa The Great is showing us all that lifting the veil and honoring the ecosystem behind the camera doesn't diminish the star at the front - it in fact, elevates the entire industry. It’s time other artistes took a page from that book. The culture is built by a village, and everyone in that village deserves to have their name remembered.