Jeremiah Ndjoze While the Namibian music industry boasts a wide range of musical genres, some of which are mainstreamed, while a particular few are individualistic, not many musicians share the genuine passion for learning and some darn good study habits. This, of course, brought out the element of surprise when dancehall musician, Mr. Simple, real name Clayton Chigarito, took a long hiatus from the music stage, to pursue a Bachelor of Logistics and Supply Chain Management – at the Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST). The musician – whose entry in the music scene in 2011, was later dogged by reports of a turbulent nuptial to one of Namibia’s golden voiced musicians, which ended in a divorce – maintains that he is stepping back into the studio to cook up his third studio offering. Queried as to why he opted to return to school while other musicians are dropping out, to pursue their musical dreams, Mr. Simple went philosophical. “When I got into the music industry I had a bit of an education. I have discovered at an early stage, that the power of the book is very vital. It gives you the insight that will enable you to avoid being robbed, as well as, the knowledge on how to properly package your brand,” Mr. Simple maintains. He urges upcoming musicians to refrain from dropping out of school completely, and advised them to try and maintain the balancing act between their new found careers and their education, where possible. “Regardless of whatever comes your way, education is not to be taken for granted,” the musician stresses. His debut album, Liberty, was released in December 2011. He describes this project as a cocktail album, in which he freely roamed from one musical genre to the next, presumably in a quest to find himself. “I called it Liberty because I had total control of the works and was free to do whatever I wanted,” Mr. Simple reveals adding that it was during the making of this project that he earned his moniker – thanks to his effortless lyrical prowess and simplicity during production. While the album may have fared well on the local scene, it failed to break into the international market because of what he referred to as technicalities. He followed this album up with, Simplified, which was released in 2016. Featuring the mega hit, Number 1, the album was made up of eight tracks, chosen from a total of 32 songs. He opted to drop only 8 songs in the Simplified offering, to trim down the listeners choices. “My first album had 17 songs but only seven or eight were played often. So I decided, at that time, to make 32 tracks and bring in people that can choose the best songs so I can bring out a proper hit album,” he reveals. With the album that is currently in production, the musician has promised to switch it up again. It will not be business as usual. Instead of producing a full album in-one-go, he will be dropping singles for airplay, at regular intervals, which he will eventually package as an album. “The current approach by many musicians is to create the product and then look for the buyers. My approach this time around, is to get the clients to like the works and then sell them something that they already like. More like, get the market first and then sell the product to a captive client base,” Mr. Simple informs, probably flaunting his newly acquired know how. Going back to school was, seemingly, not a bad idea after all. In addition to his music, Mr. Simple, a qualified hairdresser, reveals that he is finally opening his own hair salon in the city centre. This while operating a logistics venture that he is in the process of setting up.