The Sunday Mail
BRYN Taurai Mteki is back in the country and is taking no prisoners as he says his mind.
In his short stint since he marked his return with an album launch in July, the sculptor-cum-musician-cum-politician has already ruffled some feathers.
Sekuru Tau
In a recent interview with The Sunday Mail Leisure in the capital, Mteki lambasted the exponents of Zim-dancehall and Zim hip-hop genres.
The singer, whose music career is almost non-existent, also insisted that he is not a spent force. He recently released a compilation album titled “Makarekare – Greatest Hits of All Time part 1”. The project comes exactly eight years after his last offering titled “Tsuro Magen’a”.
“Music is treasure hence you cannot say an artiste is a spent force because he or she has not released a new album in a perceived long time. There are various reasons that can stop artistes from releasing albums, among them piracy, which is being fuelled by studios and musicians alike,” said the musician who is also known as Sekuru Tau.
His latest compilation album themed “Back in Zimbabwe” is dedicated to the musician’s late mother who passed on last year. The album carries a song from seven of his previous albums.
Sekuru Tau, who at one time was one of the most talked about singers in the country following his collaboration with the late Zanu PF national commissar, Elliot Manyika on the song “Nora” argues he is not just in the game but is also a force to reckon with.
Said Sekuru Tau: “I will persevere because I know the value of art. The problem we now have is that everyone who wishes to record can now do so and as a result, the market has been flooded with poor material. This has a negative bearing on each and every one of us.”
Sekuru Tau said he is back in the country for good and will now be visiting the United States and other European countries as a visitor on tour.
“My mother used to manage some of my businesses in Zimbabwe. So after her passing on, I realised I had to come back to Zimbabwe to take over the management role. Also, I have started the Mteki Foundation to help the less privileged in society and I’m on the ground to see it grow,” revealed the artiste.
On Mukanya and Chimurenga Music
“Thomas Mapfumo has no exclusive rights to the mbira instrument or its sound and anyone singing and incorporating the thumb-piano in their music is not emulating or copying the self-exiled musician,” said the straight-talking Sekuru Tau.
He insists that his music has been wrongly classified as Mapfumo’s Chimurenga music, which has created breakthrough problems for him.
Mteki distanced his music from that of Mapfumo.
Most people regard Sekuru Tau’s compositions as Chimurenga music due to some similarities of his beat and voice to that of the self-exiled music legend, Mukanya.
A number of artistes, among them the late Robbie Chagumuka and Farai Pio Macheka, Raymond Majongwe, Evans Sekete, and most recently Jairos Chabvonga, have tried to capitalise on Mukanya’s absence on the domestic market.
However, they have had little or no success. In fact, market watchers argue that the pretenders-to-the-throne have failed to reach even half of the standards set by the music guru.
To this, Sekuru Tau said comparison with Mukanya is the reason why he and the others like him have had challenges in the music industry.
“I don’t sing Chimurenga music. In fact, Chimurenga is a sound that was created by Thomas (Mapfumo) and he christened it so because it was created during the liberation struggle and made an impact then,” said Sekuru Tau.
“…this does not mean then that every sound that involves the mbira instrument and is inclined to Mukanya’s beat is Chimurenga. I sing African Roots Music under Sekuru Tau World Music.”
On new genres
The firebrand musician fired a salvo at youthful musicians and described traditional music as the only brand associated with Zimbabwe.
“Mbira defines Zimbabwean music. The instrument helps create a unique culture for us. There is no such thing as Zim dancehall or Zim hip-hop. That is not our culture and certainly not a part of our legacy. In sculpture, we made a mark as Zimbabweans because we exported our style. If we had copied the likes of Picasso (Pablo), we would not have grown. The world out there appreciates original styles,” he said.
Born in 1975, Sekuru Tau is the third born in a family of six boys and 2 girls.
Apart from music, he is an exceptional sculptor who presented
“Honoured Good Leader” to President Mugabe on his 71st birthday in February 1995. His giant huge sculpture titled “Chippi” appeared during the Sixth All Africa Games hosted in Zimbabwe during the same year. Standing at 2,5 metres high, the sculptor was the games’ mascot and is now at the National Sports Stadium next to the games’ flame.
Sekuru Tau’s discography also include “Kuyaruka”, “Kurauone”, “Hamunyare”, “Ndakura”, “Pfugama Unamate” and “Vadzoka”.
