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Zimbabwe: "We Are Still Here Ambuya"
AfricaFocus Bulletin
Dec 10, 2003 (031210)
(Reposted from sources cited below)
Editor's Note
"We Are Still Here Ambuya," sings mbira player and activist
Machingura in his new CD released recently in Berkeley, California.
Linking struggles for social justice in Zimbabwe, the United
States, and around the world, Machingura's music-making in
California follows on his experience as vocalist in Harare's Luck
Street Blues band in the late 1990s. It has also led to his
selection as one of six "Artist Ambassadors" for the World
Social Forum in Mumbai, India in January. He follows in a rich
tradition of Zimbabwean musicians whose music has both reflected
and inspired their people's quest for justice.
This issue of AfricaFocus Bulletin features words from the title
track of Machingura's "We Are Still Here," along with a link to
download the song or order the CD. It also features a selection of
links to introduce the reader to the rich world of Zimbabwean music
online, with reviews, downloads, background articles, and more.
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MACHINGURA - Singer, Songwriter, Activist
Machingura is a Zimbabwean mbira player and global justice activist
living in Berkeley, California since 1999, He is a Steering
Committee member of Health GAP and Priority Africa Network and a
member of the Interim Steering Committee of the Zim-friends
Association in California. A regular performer at cultural and
political events in the Bay Area, he has just released his first
CD. The words of the title track are below.
Change
Music and words by P. Machingura
Title track from new CD "We Are Still Here" - available for free
download from the Machingura website [http://www.machingura.com]
The CD can also be ordered through the website.
You'd not believe it Mbuya Nehanda*
Honestly
After all this time
Not much has changed
There are rivers everywhere
Not a place is there to bathe
They wage war and call it peace
Your land is drenched in red
With today's technology
We produce more than we need
And yet throughout this living earth
There is so much poverty
We spent longer hours at work
But our paychecks continue to shrink
The kids are alone at home
Being brought up by network TV
You would not believe it Mbuya Nehanda
Honestly
CHORUS:
The more things change
The more they remain the same
The more things change
The more they remain the same
Ain't that strange
I think it's strange
It's all so strange
There are rivers everywhere
Not a drop is there to drink
The gov'ment that sought my vote
No longer represents me
Public airwaves are colonized
Freedom of speech demonized
Ignorance and hatred
Are the seeds they sow
Our taxes buy guns and missiles
Don't have no money to hire teachers
Forget about schools and books
We've got prisons and more police
You would not believe it Mbuya Nehanda
Honestly
CHORUS
But despair not Ambuya
We are still here Ambuya
Your bones your spirit
Working night and day
For a world with justice
But no, we won't forget
They hanged you in Salisbury
They killed Martin Luther King
Murdered Mahatma Ghandi
But oh little did they know
That in every corner of the world
Your spirit would rise
Your spirit would rise
And now here we are Ambuya
Tatekeshera nenyika yese
[we are to be found all over the world]
Kumabvazuva nekumadokera
[from the east to the west]
From the north to the south
Oh Ambuya hear us
Hear your children singing
Haiyai hondendee
Haiyai hondendee
* Ancestral spirit "Grandmother" Nehanda. The woman who was her
medium in the late nineteenth century inspired Zimbabwean
resistance to European conquest in 1896-97, and was hanged by the
British in 1898. She is famed for her saying that "my bones will
rise again."
General Sites on Zimbabwean Music
Dandemutande: Zimbabwean Music Worldwide
http://www.dandemutande.org
Includes catalog, free downloads, and extensive resource guide to
other resources.
Music of Zimbabwe: Zimbabwean Music Guide
http://www.embargo.ca/zim
Artists' profiles, album listings, sample downloads, and
a primer with background on traditional and contemporary
instruments and genres
Zimbabwean Music Festival
http://www.zimfest.org
Zimfest 2003, the "largest annual gathering in North America of
students, teachers, performers, and fans of Zimbabwean music" took
place from August 8-10 in Portland, Oregon.
The Music of Zimbabwe
http://www.postcolonialweb.org/zimbabwe/music/zmusicov.html
Essays, some lyrics, translations from publications by Alice
Dadirai Kwaramba.
Individual Musicians
Thomas Mapfumo and the Blacks Unlimited
http://www.anonymousweb.com/thomas_mapfumo.html
Oliver Mtukudzi and the Black Spirits
http://www.tukumusic.com
Brief excerpt from interview with Oliver Mtukudzi
by Meron Tesfa Michael, April 4, 2003
http://www.worldpress.org/Africa/1039.cfm
World Press Review: Your albums are known for your lyrics that deal
with social and economic issues in Zimbabwe. What are the problems
that preoccupy you most, and your suggested remedies?
Mtukudzi: My lyrics have always been drawn from people and their
day-to-day issues - not just their difficulties but also their
humor, happiness, irony. I may reflect more on those issues that
touch me in some way, but my lyrics tend to highlight people?s
values and I guess I reinforce the more positive ones. I also like
to challenge customs and behavior that encourage greed and
selfishness, and I am very conscious of the disparities in our
society, especially where women's rights are concerned. As far as
Zimbabwe is concerned, we are living in a very divisive society
right now, so these days I sing about the need for peace, unity and
tolerance.
World Press Review: If you had to distill all your work into just
one song about Zimbabwe, to convey a message to the world, what
would the message be?
Mtukudzi: For several years now, Zimbabwe has been a major focal
point for the regional and international press. The message I would
most like to convey to my listeners is that there are so many major
catastrophes facing the African continent right now (like the AIDS
pandemic, famine, etc.) that it is frustrating to witness
governments that have been voted into power by the people spending
so much time, energy, and often scarce resources on issues of
conflict and power.
As a person who is recognized within my community, I feel a really
strong sense of responsibility to be the kind of role model who
promotes the right things. Peace and democracy are such critical
factors in building a healthy society and yet our politicians seem
obsessed with party politics, and corruption is eroding every
sector of society.
Key Sites for More African Music Resources
AfroPop Worldwide
http://www.afropop.org
The site for the public radio show and much more, including
interviews, song downloads for 99 cents each and a weekly e-mail
newsletter on African music.
Putumayo World Music
http://www.putumayo.com
One of the leading world music labels.
AfricaFocus Bulletin is a free independent electronic publication
providing reposted commentary and analysis on African issues, with
a particular focus on U.S. and international policies. AfricaFocus
Bulletin is edited by William Minter.
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