“You Can’t Groove to Neria”: Packed Turnout at Zimfest Has Zim and SA Clashing

• Zimbabweans filled a tent at Zimfest on 25 July 2026, dancing to Amapiano after organisers dropped South African artists from the lineup
• The decision to remove SA performers came after the Mabahambe protests, during which Zimbabweans said South Africans were not welcome to perform there
• A TikTok video of the packed crowd sparked a heated back-and-forth between South Africans and Zimbabweans online

A video of a packed Zimfest tent in Zimbabwe set off a fierce online debate between South Africans and Zimbabweans on 25 July 2026. TikTok user @charlesmasunda posted the clip showing a buzzing crowd dancing freely to Amapiano music, with barely any space left inside the venue. What made the video so striking was that, despite the removal of some South African acts, the crowd were still in high spirits.

Amapiano still plays, with or without SA artists

Zimbabweans still grooved to Amapiano, a genre from South Africa, filling the tent. The video's backdrop matters. Festival organisers had removed some South African artists from the entertainment lineup following the Mabahambe protests, a movement in which Zimbabweans expressed outrage that their people were being unwelcome in South Africa. Many said it made no sense for South African performers to fill stages in Zimbabwe under those circumstances.

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Watch the packed Zimfest crowd dance to Amapiano in the TikTok video below:

Zim and SA fans clash in the comments

For South Africans watching, that contradiction was hard to miss. Many pointed out that dropping South African artists while still dancing to South African music sent a mixed message. Zimbabweans, on the other hand, were proud of the turnout and saw it as proof that their people show up regardless.

User @Sthule Mthabela wrote:

"I thought they were boycotting SA music and musicians."

User @imbusisile said:

"You can't groove to Neria 😭."

User @KilimanjaloSuper shared:

"The way Zimbabweans love South Africans, no matter how much they are dissed. It's painful 😭."

User @Prettylady36 added:

"The thing is, Zimbabweans have beautiful souls."

User @samurai farai offered a different view:

"This is a perfect example that real life is different from social media. Trolls are busy sowing seeds of hate & division, but they've failed."

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• A Zimbabwean woman shared a humorous video of herself panicking about who she would date if she had to return home, and noted that she prefers South Africans.
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• A Zimbabwean woman posted a TikTok video thanking South Africa for hosting both legal and undocumented immigrants for decades, saying the number of foreign immigrants was now beyond control.

Source: Briefly News