Artistes sing for new Zimbabwe
Zimdancehall artistes Killer T and Sniper Storm, gospel star Shingisai Suluma as well as South Africa-based hip-hop artiste Don Dadda are among musicians who have released songs celebrating the new political dispensation spawned by former president Robert Mugabe’s resignation last week.
Most of these songs pay homage to the Zimbabwe Defence Forces who allowed ordinary Zimbabweans to flood the streets of Harare in demonstrations that eventually forced Mugabe to quit and be replaced by his ally-turned-foe Emmerson Mnangagwa.
Interestingly, the songs by Killer T and Sniper Storm are both titled Nyika Yese Irikufara. Not surprisingly both songs praise the role the armed forces in unseating Mugabe who stubbornly clung to power for the past 37 years.
Part of Killer T’s song goes:
“Nyika yese irikupembera (The whole country is celebrating). Munhu wese arikufara (Everyone is happy). Kana masoja agara atiudza kuti hakuna anosara (The army said everyone should participate in the removal of Robert Mugabe from the presidency.)”
In part of the celebratory song he sings:
“Masoja apinda patown zvikanzi mapurisa rovai shoes (The soldiers moved into the city centre and displaced member of the police)…Vanhu arikuita madiro aJojina.Tinovatenda masoja edu. Tinovatenda vaChiwenga, tinovatambira bho ED mutungamiri wedu (The people are beside themselves with joy. We are grateful to Zimbabwe Defence Forces Commander Constantino Chiwenga and President Emmerson Mnangagwa.)”
On the other hand, United States of America-based Suluma’s song is more subtle. She mentions neither Chiwenga nor Mnangagwa. She praises Zimbabweans as one collective but emphasises the fact that the journey has just begun.
She sings:
“Zvino tavepano hatichadzokeri shure. (Now that we have got this far we should remain forward-looking.) Fambai rwendo rurefu.Shingai tichasvikayo. Mwari tungamirai pano tasvika. (Let us remain steadfast on this long journey because we will reach our destination with God’s guidance.”)
South Africa-based Don Dada, who is widely regarded to have been the first person to learn in a government school (Avondale Primary) with dreadlocks in 1993, has dropped a celebratory track titled Kubatana Zimbabwe.
Don Dada attracted national attention in South Africa after he was granted the rights to compose the official 2017 Nelson Mandela Day song titled Viva Mandela.
Meanwhile, the new political dispensation has spawned a deluge of jokes circulating on social media most of which centre on former president Mugabe.
One such joke poked fun on Mugabe’s dogged determination to hang onto to power. It goes:
“I have made the mistake of making Mugabe’s picture my profile picture but now I am failing to remove it.” DailyNews
