Entertainment / Celebrity
'Some of my songs will be released long after my death' says Mukanya
18 Mar 2013 at 19:10hrs | Views
CHIMURENGA musician Thomas Mapfumo says he has written so many songs that they may continue to be recorded long after his death.
Mukanya told the Herald in a telephone interview from London last week, a few days before his historic gig with Oliver Mtukudzi, Mapfumo - whose other stage names are Mukanya or the Hurricane Hugo - said he has been working on a number of musical projects that he has been piling up.
"So much has been happening in my life from the time I was in Zimbabwe, right up to my stay in Oregon. I have turned all these narratives into songs, piles of albums.
"There is so much that I have written about and even if I was to start release them now, each month, I will not exhaust the musical projects. I believe some of them will be released long after I have gone.
"Dzimwe ngoma dzacho dzinosara dzorira, ndafa kare" (Some of the songs will be played long after I am gone)," he said.
He added that while some of the songs aptly captured his life, there were also quite a number that touched on various issues that included love, relationships, societal hardships and life in general.
Mukanya is currently working on a new album, "World on Fire", that is expected to hit the US streets a few weeks from now.
The 14-track album is mainly about raging wars in different parts of the globe although it has a couple of love tracks on it.
The Chimurenga music icon, who has maintained an eight-year absence from the local entertainment scene choosing to hold shows in neighbouring South Africa, is expected in the country in July this year for a series of homecoming shows.
Already his fans are eagerly awaiting his return for the hows that are expected to be sold out.
Mapfumo, who now lives in the United States, left Zimbabwe nine years ago and went into self-imposed exile alleging persecution and intimidation,
Initially, Mukanya would stage homecoming shows every festive season and his first show after relocating to the US was held at the Boka Tobacco Auction Floors and was packed to capacity.
Since then his fans have been waiting for him to come and stage another show, although he has been to South Africa, where he has held several gigs.
Born in 1945 in Marondera, the "Tumirai Vana Kuhondo" hitmaker lived a traditional lifestyle until the age of 10, when his family moved to Mbare.
He joined his first band, the Zutu Brothers, as a singer at the age of 16, starting a musical journey that made him one of the greatest musicians in the country's history.
Mukanya told the Herald in a telephone interview from London last week, a few days before his historic gig with Oliver Mtukudzi, Mapfumo - whose other stage names are Mukanya or the Hurricane Hugo - said he has been working on a number of musical projects that he has been piling up.
"So much has been happening in my life from the time I was in Zimbabwe, right up to my stay in Oregon. I have turned all these narratives into songs, piles of albums.
"There is so much that I have written about and even if I was to start release them now, each month, I will not exhaust the musical projects. I believe some of them will be released long after I have gone.
"Dzimwe ngoma dzacho dzinosara dzorira, ndafa kare" (Some of the songs will be played long after I am gone)," he said.
He added that while some of the songs aptly captured his life, there were also quite a number that touched on various issues that included love, relationships, societal hardships and life in general.
Mukanya is currently working on a new album, "World on Fire", that is expected to hit the US streets a few weeks from now.
The 14-track album is mainly about raging wars in different parts of the globe although it has a couple of love tracks on it.
The Chimurenga music icon, who has maintained an eight-year absence from the local entertainment scene choosing to hold shows in neighbouring South Africa, is expected in the country in July this year for a series of homecoming shows.
Already his fans are eagerly awaiting his return for the hows that are expected to be sold out.
Mapfumo, who now lives in the United States, left Zimbabwe nine years ago and went into self-imposed exile alleging persecution and intimidation,
Initially, Mukanya would stage homecoming shows every festive season and his first show after relocating to the US was held at the Boka Tobacco Auction Floors and was packed to capacity.
Since then his fans have been waiting for him to come and stage another show, although he has been to South Africa, where he has held several gigs.
Born in 1945 in Marondera, the "Tumirai Vana Kuhondo" hitmaker lived a traditional lifestyle until the age of 10, when his family moved to Mbare.
He joined his first band, the Zutu Brothers, as a singer at the age of 16, starting a musical journey that made him one of the greatest musicians in the country's history.
Source - TH
