Joseph Muruko: How MR. SHOWTIME Is Winning on Every Stage.

At 29, Zimbabwean born, events host and curator Joseph Muruko, known on stage as MR. SHOWTIME has already lived the kind of arc many creatives only imagine. His career did not begin in front of stadium lights or beside global Afrobeat stars. It began in a small Birmingham club where he paid £10 every Friday, not to party, but to practice. He would slip inside, convince the DJ he was working, and use the room as a training ground. No fee. No applause. Just an emerging talent studying crowd behaviour and learning how to command it. That single choice to invest in his craft before anyone invested in him tells you almost everything you need to know about how he has risen to some of the most visible stages in the Afro diaspora scene.

What MR. SHOWTIME has built over the past nine years is more than a career in hosting. It is a proof of concept for young African creatives that discipline, consistency and faith can take you from the queue outside a club to the global circuit. He has hosted headline shows for artists such as Asake, Shalipopi, Uncle Waffles and Rick Ross. He has been on BBC 1XTRA with Eddie Kadi. He has stood in front of thousands at festivals like Zimfest, Amafest and, in 2025, Afronation, the world’s largest Afrobeats festival. That is not luck. It is the compounding effect of showing up long before the spotlight was ready.

His origin story is simple. Music has always been home. Before the mic he was a drummer and a dancer. The stage was familiar but the microphone was revelation. The first time he held it he felt what many performers spend years chasing. Purpose. From there he did the unglamorous work. In March 2017 he earned his first £20 for a warm up set while still at university. By 2019 he was trusted to host Tion Wayne at the O2 Institute in Birmingham, his first big room. That night proved something crucial. Promoters saw that he understood timing, energy and what it takes to keep an audience fully present. Opportunities accelerated.

Then came the amapiano wave. September 2021 placed him beside Major League DJz. In the same month he was called again to host another Tion Wayne show, this time at Forum Birmingham. He calls it a turning point and he is right to do so. The following two years brought more bookings, more trust and more visibility. August 2022 he was back with Major League DJz, this time in London for their Carnival Balcony Mix Special. In December 2022 he hosted Asake’s first UK headline show before the artist’s breakout dates in Manchester and London. That is a historic slot for any MC. It positioned MR. SHOWTIME not just as a regional host but as a reliable bridge between African talent and UK audiences.

From that moment his calendar began to look international. First Zimfest in July 2023 then Uncle Waffles’ first UK headline show in January 2024, which connected him to the brands he had been eyeing. Followed by Dubai with Dankie Sounds in May 2024, then Amafest, the UK’s first outdoor amapiano festival. 2025 is the year he calls his proudest, A world tour narrative began to form. MR. SHOWTIME headed to Dubai again in April for AfroLoud, Afronation in July, Ibiza with Dankie Sounds in September and Washington D.C. with Amapiano DMV in October to name a few destinations. A booking that made him pause and reflect on the journey from paying to enter clubs to being flown across continents to lead the vibe.

What makes his story resonate with founders, professionals and dreamers is that it is not just a highlight reel. It is a study in how credibility is built in the creator economy. First, he created demand by overdelivering in small rooms. Second, he stayed present in the culture, particularly within the Afro and amapiano scenes, which meant that when promoters needed a host who understood both the music and the audience, his name was already circulating. Third, he kept his brand clean, energetic and exportable. Event organisers in London, Dubai or Washington needed to be sure the host can read a diverse crowd.

There is a deeper layer to his work. He is explicit about the fact that his growth is not only talent and work ethic. He credits God. In his own words, faith without works is dead. So he works, and then he submits the work. That posture has made his journey relatable to young Africans in the diaspora who are trying to reconcile ambition with faith. Even with a BBC 1XTRA appearance, international bookings and a growing reputation, he views himself as a vessel. That perspective keeps him grounded in an industry that often rewards ego more than service.

The impact is already visible. Young people in his community, particularly Zimbabweans in the UK and across the diaspora, now have a contemporary example of what a creative career can look like if it is treated with the seriousness of a business. He shows them that you can start small, charge little or nothing while you learn, document your wins, build relationships with promoters, and eventually be the person called for high stakes, high visibility shows. In an era where many want viral fame, he has chosen sustained relevance.

For ambitious readers, his journey offers three takeaways. Proximity matters. He kept showing up in the rooms where the music was happening. Mastery compounds. Six months of unpaid Fridays became nine years of paid, international assignments. And purpose endures. His motivation is to be remembered not just for the volume of shows but for the doors he opened and the people he inspired. That is the posture of someone building legacy, not just stacking bookings.

From Birmingham clubs to global festivals, MR. SHOWTIME has proven that a microphone, in the right hands, is more than a tool for announcements. It is a bridge. It connects artist to audience, continent to diaspora, and one young dreamer in Zimbabwe to a life of global stages.

Profile Full Name: Joseph Muruko

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