Opinion by Nigel Pfunde
DRUGS killed Chiwoniso Maraire in 2013.
That is my story and I’m sticking to it and after all the dead cannot sue!
I had a rich relationship with her and Chii’s talent was off the chain.
However , that she died did not kill mbira music in Zimbabwe.
And I know she is happy wherever she is after learning the craft from her dad Dumisani who was a lecturer in the United States and that explains Chii’s accent where she spoke through the nasal passage but maintained her deep African roots.
The beat goes on :The late Chiwoniso Maraire’s legacy is alive
In the rich tapestry of Zimbabwean traditional music few instruments carry the cultural weight of the mbira.
It’s a world renowned instrument and I give props to Albert Chimedza from the Mbira Centre for manufacturing the instrument .
In my stint as an arts reporter and music critique for more than a decade ,I have noticed that the Mbira music genre has been male dominated in obviously a phallocentric society (if I’m to borrow Tsitsi Dangarembga’ s diction in her novel the Nervous Condition which was my set book at Advanced Level).
However, Chii whose ethereal voice and mastery of the thumb piano redefined the role of women in traditional music spaces.
In the years since her death, I believe the natural successor is Hope Masike.
Dubbed the “Princess of Mbira,” Masike has not only upheld the legacy left by Chiwoniso but has boldly scripted her own path through fusing traditional rhythms with jazz, Afrobeat, poetry, and contemporary sounds without ever losing the spiritual core of the mbira.
She is not a ‘manjuzu’ , that I know .
I have had a personal relationship with her borne out of her being my cousin Bhibi’s classmate at Danhiko college.
She is just a born champion !
While others have picked up the mbira since Chiwoniso’s death Masike’s fearless creativity, social consciousness, and international acclaim have firmly placed her at the helm of a genre deeply woven into Zimbabwe’s identity.
Both Chii and Masike represent a generational shift where women are reclaiming a space that had long been dominated by men like Solo Makore, Sekuru Gora what have you.
Chii opened the door and Masike walked through it and kept it open.
She got the master keys!
Their similarities are not merely symbolic.
Like Chii, Masike learnt the mbira in defiance of cultural norms and with a spirit of quiet rebellion.
I always tell her how she hit the ‘bulls eye’ when she enrolled to study music formally at the Zimbabwe College of Music and later became one of the first contemporary female mbira players to break into global stages.
She has performed in Europe, Asia and across Africa.
But while Chii ’s music leaned heavily on soulful introspection and traditional resistance, Masike’s sound is more eclectic bold and experimental but yet rooted.
In 2012 she released her debut album Mbira, Love and Chocolate.
The offering introduced a softer an romantic dimension to the instrument while subsequent projects like “The Exorcism of a Spinster”.
The album took on themes of patriarchy, liberation, and womanhood.
Masike is a cultural custodian and educator who also teaches music.
Chii used her platform to speak on issues of social justice and Masike has become a voice for women’s rights, freedom of expression and African pride.
Let me hasten to say that Masike doesn’t imitate but she simply innovates.
Internationally, Hope Masike is arguably Zimbabwe’s most prominent mbira ambassador today.
She has performed on some of the world’s biggest stages from HIFA and Lake of Stars to concerts in Norway, China, Italy and Germany.
She has collaborated with artists from different genres and continents.
A decade after Chii’ s passing the mbira music genre is still in safe hands.
I’m not waxing lyrical over Masike because she is a good sister of mine with a relationship cultivated because of a common denominator of passion for arts but my story is there were ever to be a “queen” of the mbira music throne, Hope Masike wears the crown with grace and power.
Yesterday (Saturday) spoke to her and she had just an electrifying show in Belgium.
“Hanzvadzi, I performed at this show in Belgium yesterday ,I was humbled by the response,” she said with her inimitable voice and infectious laugh.
That’s my story and I’m sticking to it!
