Building a respectful, credible, and influential music community together.

These Guidelines govern how users engage on Vunanga (the "Platform"), how reputation is earned, and how community influence is structured. They should be read together with our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.

1. Code of Conduct

Vunanga is a community centred on the appreciation, discovery, and discussion of South African music. All users are expected to engage in a respectful, constructive, and responsible manner.

You agree to:

• Treat all members with dignity and respect, regardless of differing opinions or musical preferences;
• Engage in constructive discussion: critique ideas, not individuals;
• Contribute meaningfully to conversations and community activities.

You must not:

• Engage in harassment, hate speech, bullying, intimidation, or personal attacks;
• Post or distribute false, misleading, defamatory, or harmful content;
• Spam, self-promote excessively, or manipulate engagement;
• Share confidential or personal information of others without consent;
• Attempt to manipulate ratings, charts, or platform systems.

Enforcement: We reserve the right to remove content, restrict features, reduce reputation (VP), or suspend/terminate accounts for violations. Enforcement actions are taken at our sole discretion.

2. Participation & Core Activities

All registered users may:

• Rate songs, albums, and artists;
• Comment on songs, articles, and forum discussions;
• Participate in forums;
• Vote in showdowns;
• Create radio alerts;
• Submit events for listing (subject to verification and approval).

Participation contributes to your Vunanga Points (VP) and overall reputation.

3. Song Ratings

Users may rate songs on a scale of 1 to 10. Ratings:

• Reflect personal opinion;
• Contribute to community-driven charts;
• Influence discovery and visibility of music on the Platform.

Ratings must be genuine and not intended to manipulate chart outcomes.

4. Forums & Community Contributions

Forums are structured spaces for discussion across music genres, trends, and topics.

• From Contributor level and above, users may create new discussion topics;
• All users may participate in discussions;
• Topics must be clearly titled, relevant, and posted in the appropriate category.

Low-quality, duplicate, or misleading topics may be removed.

5. Vunanga Points (VP) & Reputation System

VP are earned through meaningful participation and contributions to the Platform. These include, but are not limited to:

• Ratings, comments, and forum participation;
• Showdown participation and creation;
• Contributions such as artist profiles, events, and metadata updates (subject to approval);
• Account actions (e.g. email verification, profile completion);
• Optional engagement actions such as newsletter subscriptions.

VP accumulation determines your reputation level, which unlocks features, influence, and potential benefits.

6. Reputation Levels & Progression

As you earn VP, you progress through structured levels that reflect your contribution and credibility within the community.

• Listener → Analyst: Progression is automatic based on VP thresholds;
• Critic and above: Requires administrative review and approval.

Higher levels carry increased responsibility and influence.

7. Roles, Permissions & Influence by Level

Contributor (and above)

• Ability to create forum topics

Analyst (and above)

• Ability to create and configure showdowns
• Eligibility to write official articles published on the Platform
• Articles may be compensated at Vunanga's discretion

Critic (and above)

• Designated as an Official Critic of the Platform
• May be invited to review and critique music works in an official capacity
• Participation may be compensated at Vunanga's discretion
• Eligible to participate in official voting groups for future Vunanga music awards

Luminary

• Highest level of recognition within the community
• May be invited to become a brand ambassador
• Eligible for exclusive perks, benefits, and platform discounts

8. Voting Power & Influence

Each reputation level carries a vote weighting, which influences:

• Community charts;
• Showdown outcomes;
• Future award voting systems.

Vote weights increase progressively with reputation and are subject to periodic review.

9. Benefits & Incentives

Accumulating VP may unlock benefits, including but not limited to:

• Platform discounts;
• Exclusive features or access;
• Recognition and status within the community;
• Invitations to participate in platform initiatives.

Important: All benefits, rewards, and eligibility criteria are granted at Vunanga's sole discretion and may be modified, introduced, or withdrawn at any time without prior notice.

10. VP Allocation & Activity Limits

VP is awarded based on defined activities, which may include:

• Ratings, comments, and forum engagement;
• Showdown participation;
• Content contributions (subject to approval);
• Platform engagement actions (e.g. profile completion, email verification, newsletter opt-in).

Daily limits and VP values may apply to certain activities to maintain fairness and prevent abuse.

Note: VP allocation rules, caps, and eligible activities may be updated or adjusted at any time at our discretion.

11. Integrity of the Platform

To maintain fairness and credibility:

• Any attempt to artificially inflate VP, rankings, or influence is strictly prohibited;
• Automated behaviour, coordinated manipulation, or abuse of systems may result in penalties;
• We reserve the right to adjust scores, revoke VP, or remove privileges where abuse is detected.

12. Data & Privacy

We take the protection of your personal information seriously.

For details on how your data is collected, processed, and protected, please refer to our Privacy Policy.

13. Changes to These Guidelines

We may update these Community Guidelines from time to time to reflect changes in the Platform, legal requirements, or community needs.

Continued use of the Platform constitutes acceptance of any updated Guidelines.

14. Final Authority

All interpretations of these Guidelines, including eligibility, VP allocation, moderation decisions, and feature access, remain at the sole discretion of Vunanga.