Entertainment / Music
Amajahamahle bring maskandi with a difference
04 May 2015 at 14:39hrs | Views
JOHANNESBURG - Maskandi singers have usually been known to use the Zulu/Ndebele traditional music genre to fight personal wars, but Amajamahle are out to change all that.
The group, made up of mainly people from Tsholotsho, Esigodini and Gwanda, brought a new dimension to Zimbabwe's nascent genre with the release of their 14-track debut album titled "Mhla kufik' inkunzi", with mostly songs that preach gospel, love, peace, unity and humility. "We bring forth a different kind of message and that makes us different from most of the groups that sing the same genre," said group leader, David Mjeqezi Ncube in a recent interview in Johannesburg.
"We are out to entertain music lovers and that is why we sing about all that happens in life and also give advice to society, while also preaching the return to our traditional values, which can make us stronger as a nation."
The Tsholotsho-born Ncube, who migrated to South Africa in 2007, said their album was well-received in the market, laying a strong basis for the release of subsequent albums and the group's expansion.
"We have grown as a brand and within the next few months, we will release two more groups that we are assisting - Amabhidi Amnyama from Kezi and Amathobanhliziyo, who we will both market and produce," added Ncube, whose biggest inspiration is the now-late award-winning South African maskandi singer, Umgqumeni.
"Our ultimate aim is to have our own studio to nurture and record more talented youngsters. Both of the new groups we are assisting sing about social life issues and steer away from the controversy that has seemingly plagued the genre in recent months. We changed the studio for these two groups because we do not want to give fans the same taste. We want to diversify."
To show their growth as a professional outfit, Amajahamahle have hired respected Bigfoster Nkomose - a well-known and respected Zimbabwean music analyst in South Africa, as their full-time manager. "When the group came knocking, I jumped at the opportunity because I have always respected them for the way they present themselves in the community," said the Plumtree-born Nkomose.
"A musician's life goes beyond time in the studio and stage performance to the way one behaves in the community in which they live. Amajahamahle are a well-knit brand that anyone would love to work with and grow even further.
"The next step now is to make sure that the brand is marketed all over Zimbabwe and Southern Africa and we aim to do that by holding shows Kezi, Bulawayo, Tsholotsho, Nyamandlovu and Plumtree for the whole of June, showing people what we are really made of. We also wish to perform at the various music galas that are held in Zimbabwe because that is where our market is and we cannot shy away from the people that we seek to entertain. The group is made up of even youngsters aged 8-13years, to ensure that the brand is maintained beyond the current membership."
The group has already held its own in shows alongside great South African acts like Fihlisikhwele, Igcokama Elisha, Uboneni and Bonakele.
They are also open for bookings at weddings and other activities on +27 82 637 1230 and +27 73 562 3170.
The group, made up of mainly people from Tsholotsho, Esigodini and Gwanda, brought a new dimension to Zimbabwe's nascent genre with the release of their 14-track debut album titled "Mhla kufik' inkunzi", with mostly songs that preach gospel, love, peace, unity and humility. "We bring forth a different kind of message and that makes us different from most of the groups that sing the same genre," said group leader, David Mjeqezi Ncube in a recent interview in Johannesburg.
"We are out to entertain music lovers and that is why we sing about all that happens in life and also give advice to society, while also preaching the return to our traditional values, which can make us stronger as a nation."
The Tsholotsho-born Ncube, who migrated to South Africa in 2007, said their album was well-received in the market, laying a strong basis for the release of subsequent albums and the group's expansion.
"We have grown as a brand and within the next few months, we will release two more groups that we are assisting - Amabhidi Amnyama from Kezi and Amathobanhliziyo, who we will both market and produce," added Ncube, whose biggest inspiration is the now-late award-winning South African maskandi singer, Umgqumeni.
To show their growth as a professional outfit, Amajahamahle have hired respected Bigfoster Nkomose - a well-known and respected Zimbabwean music analyst in South Africa, as their full-time manager. "When the group came knocking, I jumped at the opportunity because I have always respected them for the way they present themselves in the community," said the Plumtree-born Nkomose.
"A musician's life goes beyond time in the studio and stage performance to the way one behaves in the community in which they live. Amajahamahle are a well-knit brand that anyone would love to work with and grow even further.
"The next step now is to make sure that the brand is marketed all over Zimbabwe and Southern Africa and we aim to do that by holding shows Kezi, Bulawayo, Tsholotsho, Nyamandlovu and Plumtree for the whole of June, showing people what we are really made of. We also wish to perform at the various music galas that are held in Zimbabwe because that is where our market is and we cannot shy away from the people that we seek to entertain. The group is made up of even youngsters aged 8-13years, to ensure that the brand is maintained beyond the current membership."
The group has already held its own in shows alongside great South African acts like Fihlisikhwele, Igcokama Elisha, Uboneni and Bonakele.
They are also open for bookings at weddings and other activities on +27 82 637 1230 and +27 73 562 3170.
Source - Mxolisi Ncube
