Rest In Peace Sam Mtukudzi (1988 - 2010)

Rest In Peace to a remarkable young man with an abundance of talent. Your passing still comes as a shock and a great loss for the Zimbabwe music industry.

Chizevezeve(2006) - MaFriq

By Citizen Mueski

This week, I listened to the debut Mafriq album and as always, the Mafriq crew were original in the content of their songs. The essence of the African spirit as seen through the eyes of young adults was the most striking aspect of this album. The mixture of a traditional resonance with a deliciously urban flavour given to mundane Zimbabwean society activities such as gossiping and family life were strikingly captivating when brought to life through the songs "Chizevezeve" and "Musha Wedu". Songs such as "Love Song" and "Higher" are not only a testament to the trademark Mafriq theme on Love, but also evidence of maturity in the substance of their music. The more relaxed and toned-down aura surrounding the song "Mvura Naya" left a lasting impression as did the surprisingly new voice and the rhythms of reggae felt in "Zion".

As with any piece of music production, there was a downside to this album. Songs from previous years such as "Woza Mama Africa"(2002) and "Ndichakuudza Sei"(2004) were included, in fact, the so-called 'remix' of "Ndichakuudza sei" only has an extended introduction to this song with less instruments. These songs should not have been included in this new album and it was unnecessary to repeat the song "Zuva". Pauline's vocal skills in some of these songs leave a lot to be desired and this greatly reduced the overall quality of the entire album. The song "Can't get no Gyal" did not adequately convey the message of the lyrics in a particularly remarkable way and neither did "Murombo" capture my attention so this was a major let down on this album. The overall, quality of production in terms of instrument clarity was good but of course, there are areas that need improvement.

This album gets a 6/10 so for those of you who are keen on urban grooves and enjoy the musical flavour Mafriq dishes out, this debut won't be a let down. Expect greater things from this group and continue to watch this space.

Here is the video to their lead single off this album, the title track Chizevezeve:

Tapinda Tapinda Tapinda(2006) - Maskiri

Possibly the most controversial artist in Urban Grooves maybe even Zimbabwean history, Maskiri is back after a 2 year hiatus from the mic. As usual the album has been much anticipated with most wondering what else does Maskiri have to say which he hasn't done so? More controversy maybe? I have always been a fan regardless.

Tapinda Tapinda Tapinda is the 3rd offering from Alishias Musimbe a.k.a Maskiri and is produced by Sipho 'TBA' Mkhuhlane of Chigutiro fame. As usual the album is plastered with comical skits where Maskiri makes a mockery of the media's stories about his life. Such light hearted gimmicks have made Maskiri a household name and in the intro he declares himself a changed man now doing all things holy hence the album Tapinda Tapinda Tapinda to stress his entry into a new life. The album opens with one of the most anticipated Urban Grooves collabos since the genre became popular on Ngaakoreswe between Maskiri and Nasty Trixx. For those who don't know the 2 have been compared since Nasty Trixx came on the scene 3 years ago. Many have claimed that there is beef between the 2 and this song cancels all the speculation. It is a song about praising God in a cool way that appeals to the youth using slang words. Madiz and Diana also feature on the song.

Just when i thought i had heard it all, the song Ivy Kombo simply made me laugh where the man professes love for gospel diva and controversial singer Ivy Kombo-Moyo-Kasi. Maskiri expresses jealousy over her concerts with the likes of Vuyo Mokoena. I strongly doubt she will consider his proposal but as a listener i was in stitches. I greatly enjoyed Ndakafa where he talks about being at a concert in South Africa then dying and going to heaven meeting the likes of the late Princess Diana and smoking the leaf with the late Brenda Fassie. The instrumental isn't quite great but the lyrics made me forget that quickly. It's all about the lyrics when it comes to Maskiri and only he knows what inspires him to even think of singing such things.

It's evident that the Maskiri of old is very much alive and has plenty of interesting things to say. Other songs that left me breathless were Wheelchair featuring songstress Tererai Mugwadi and Leo Mapfumo and Miscarriage featuring Nesu. The overall production was not very good and despite changing the production team from the not so great sophomore album Blue Movie, it seems Maskiri has a long way to go before actually improving on the quality of his music. It doesn't help that he raps about nothing really, though very entertaining. If you are a serious person who likes depth in their music you might not enjoy this, it needs someone to be totally care free about whatever to get to enjoy the music. For old Maskiri fans i am sure you will love it and he wont disappoint you at all. He is simply a love or hate type of musician.

Cover Art - 5/10 (i love the font but...)
Music - 6/10
Mixing and Mastering - 6/10
I Like Factor - 7/10

Kukuda/Loving You(2006) - Cindy Raw

This year has seen more and more artists releasing albums far more than I have seen on the Urban Grooves circuit. From my recent trip to Zim I made it a sure point to stack on CDs. I bought this album based on the advice of my friend Akili and I surely want to thank him right now. Having never heard of Cindy Rufaro Munyavi ever before, I was a bit skeptical about her abilities. That feeling did not last, rest assured. She is a good singer and I found it hard to believe that she hadn’t topped charts yet. Some people just need a chance. Call it Urban Grooves sure but this lovely lady is straight Zim R’n’B. Some really hot R’n’B at that! The main concept about the album is love. She handles so many issues through her music one might end up being convinced she really went through this stuff!

Ruva is a gem I tell you. It features one of the genres most refined artist, Alexio Kawara. Their collaboration is just beautiful and they both sung very well. It might not quite compete with Tinodanana by Alexio & Teererai but it will leave you with goose bumps! The production throught the album was generally good and not monotonous and I managed to listen to every track. I appreciate it when artists acknowledge their religion and Praise You does justice. It has a bouncy beat and talks about praising God because he is the one who makes everything happen. My song of the album is Dhindindi and the title says it all. No Zimbabwean party can be complete without this tune. Take 5ive really produced a quality tune to rip through the speakers. Wreckless totally murdered his verse; he did himself a favour by switching from Hip Hop to Ragga. Other songs to watch out for are Handidi and All That I Am.

The album has the potential to do very well, some good songs and lovely singing. The let down comes in the production. Some of the instruments were not very clear and the vocals were not properly mixed and/or mastered. You can tell that some songs were recorded, mixed and mastered at different studios by different people. I think quality should be emphasized in her next project.

Kukuda/Loving You is a good album and many fans will enjoy it. I think it is worth a buy. This lady is going places and I give her 1 year tops to become Urban Grooves hottest female artist.

Cover Art – 6/10
Music – 7/10
Mixing & Mastering – 5/10
‘I Like Factor’ – 7.5/10

Spice It Up(2006) - Tia

Now this album was so vigorously marketed before release it must have hit platinum by that alone. I was really looking forward to this project especially after the success of ‘Boy U Got To Know’, after all it seemed like everyone was talking about it.

As I expected Spice It Up is full of RnB flavour and is mostly produced by Sipho 'TBA The Playboy' (ex-Chamhembe, current Chigutiro producer). The man sure knows his stuff and having said that I still believe his combination with Take 5ive of Chamhembe was a cut above the rest which saw Chamhembe become Zimbabwe’s default Urban Grooves crew. After they parted ways I don't think one of them could really rediscover that touch that once made them so popular but don't let that be an excuse to underestimate them because vanogonesesa.

The title track is bouncy and I liked the instrumental which was very well done with great instrumental clarity. Unfortunately Tia’s voice leaves a lot to be desired. The first thing my other half said when she heard the song was ‘Uri kunzwa discord iro?’ and I had a good laugh. I still like the song though! ‘Come A Lil Closer’ has a very colourful video (available on Youtube), the song is ok and not really outstanding. I reckon it will be a great song for high school disco slow jam sessions. The lyrics wouldn’t really appeal to the 21+ age group, they are just shallow. This applies to just about the whole album, there is no real maturity to the content. Lyric rake harina punch.

I was not really surprised by the inclusion of ‘Boy U Got To Know’ since it has been doing rounds on Channel O and has become somewhat popular in Southern Africa. Props to W.O.Fman Fortune Mparutsa for the production on the song, very well done. What’s with artists and putting original versions, remixes and remixes of remixes on one project? If it’s a 12 track album with 5 versions of one song I just find that a rip off. The song has 4 versions. Munodarireiko nhai as’kana? I won’t even mention the luke warm attempt at doing a Shona version. Most of Tia’s vocals on the songs had the autotune/vocoder effect that T-Pain has popularized and for me it sounded more of an attempt to disguise the sometimes dodgy vocals when she ‘attemped’ high notes. This is proof that making it in the music industry is not directly proportional to talent. She tries though.

All in all, this album is all hype with no action. It will sit in my library ,sure, but probably won’t see my media player for a few months. You will probably like this if you are into the likes of Cassie and so on without being bothered by vocal ability. Good attempt for someone who probably lacks the natural talent compared to other females in the industry.

Cover Art - 7/10 (very nice!)
Music – 5/10
Mixing & Mastering – 6/10
‘I Like Factor’ – 4/10

Come A Lil Closer

In The Beginning(2005) - B-Kay n Kazz

My first experience with these guys from Masvingo was on Channel O & MTVBaseAfrica where their video was on the charts being played at least once a day. Definitely it was quite an achievement because that kind of exposure around Africa is priceless and will go a very long way. This prompted me to search high and low for their album which I found in one of the local record stores. It’s good to see new names coming up in the music industry, we the listeners NEED it.

I can describe the music on the album, In the Beginning, as Zimbabwean commercial dancehall (a subset of Urban Grooves if you wish). For this album they seem to have taken a chunk from Richie Stevens especially on the song That Lady. It is a catchy tune where B-Kay & Kazz sang well and I’m sure many people will fall in love with it. The song everyone has been talking about is Ndikati Hello featuring Decibel. It’s a song about the joys of meeting the most beautiful people at parties and the chorus is such an easy sing along. This song is most likely what has made this album sell like hot cakes. The song has graced many Zimbabwean charts across the globe and is set to be one of the songs of the year. The great thing about the music is that the guys sing very well and back each other with such ease.

The album features the likes of H.D and Blue Jeans of the Masvingo Riddim fame who also helps produce the piece. Most of the songs are love songs which has become the main criticism of most Urban Grooves acts. Come Together is a song about AIDS and I hope it will educate many because we have all lost someone through this disease. I respect the effort in trying to raise awareness through music. After about 6 tracks or so I was rather over the hype. Ndikati Hello is really the stand out track and somewhat overshadows the rest, not even saying the other songs are bad because they are all ok. The beats just became a bit monotonous for me. Generally the album is still listenable and if you like ragga music with some smooth vocals then this one is definitely for you. I think with more exposure these guys will be a force to reckon with and I look forward to hearing more from them.

Cover Art – 3/10
Music – 6/10
Mixing & Mastering – 7/10
‘I Like Factor’ – 5/10

Ndikati Hello ft Decibel