Chazezesa: No easy walk to stardom

To give a few examples, Alick Macheso rose from the humble beginnings of the Khiama Boys which he was part of in 1986.
There is no doubt that he enjoys stardom today as a result of his experiences with Khiama Boys.
Nicholas “Madzibaba” Zakariah also has his foundation in Khiama Boys.
Other musicians who enjoyed the Khiama experience include the late Tineyi Chikupo, Cephas Karushanga, Shepherd Chinyani and John Chibadura.

Chibadura went on to form the Tembo Brothers Band while Alick Macheso formed Orchestra Mberikwazvo.
These artistes became stars in their own right after splitting up with members from their original band, Khiama Boys. It is said when two friends have a common purse, one sings and the other weeps.

Those who left the group were obviously weeping and as is often the case with many groups, it was all about money. As we know it, the world is a staircase, some are going up in it while others are coming down.
Another artiste who also left the Khiama Boys in similar circumstances is the late System Tazvida of the Chazezesa Challengers.
The Chazezesa Challengers were formed in 1993 under the direction of Fanuel a.k.a. “System” Tazvida in Chitungwiza. System, as already mentioned, was a Khiama Boys alumnus.

He complained about not receiving his fair share of royalties and decided to form his own band. Both his stints in Khiama Boys and later the Sungura Boys had ended without any financial compensation.
He recruited some experienced musicians, including his brother, Peter, as bass player and formed a five-piece band known as the Chazezesa Challengers.
It was a band of five music veterans on the Zimbabwe music scene.

Guitarist Lee Roy Lunga had played with both the Super Sounds and the Kasongo Band, while percussionist Lucky Mumiriki had experience with the Hurungwe Sounds and the Sungura Boys.
Tazvida wrote and performed songs mainly in Shona.

Tazvida was best known for his hits “Anodyiwa Haataure” and “Mushandi Ndimambo”. However, it was his 1993 hit “Rudo, Tsika Nemagariro”. which propelled him to national stardom.

The Chazezesa Challengers produced a string of hit albums in the mid-to-late 1990s; their debut, “Rudo, Tsika Nemagariro”, sold more than 20 000 copies, while “Mutunhu Unemago” topped 30 000. Some of their top songs include “Anodyiwa Haataure”, “Mabhauwa”, and “Vaforomani”. The Challengers were known for their humourous lyrics and satirical subjects.

Although System and the Chazezesa Challengers became very popular in Zimbabwe, their popularity did not spread much beyond the country’s borders apart from Mozambique,where they had a series of concerts.

Plans were underway to do an extensive tour of Europe when the band leader, System, suddenly passed away.
The band experienced two deaths in quick succession, as drummer Wezhira Shoko and talismanic leader System Tazvida both died near the turn of the millennium. The group continued without System and Wezhira. Since their deaths they have recorded a further three albums.
They learnt that diligence is a great teacher and went ahead to produce three albums, including the tribute record “Panopfungaira Pane Moto” in honour of their former leader. The band assumed a new name, Boyz dzeSmoko, in which “Smoko” is an acronym for “simple music of Kanindo origin”, the name Tazvida gave to his style of music.

Others have gone on to interpret the word “Smoko” wrongly and claim that it is about ganja smoking. System’s successor and younger brother, Peter, also died in 2002. The group continued under the leadership of Lee Roy Lunga and released another nine albums, the last one being “Smoko Pachena/Chabvondoka”.

The group successfully mixed elements of sungura, jazz, South African mbaqanga and traditional sounds, creating an appealing and popular blend.
The original Chazezesa Challengers comprised the following members:

Fanuel “System” Tazvida (vocals, guitar; who was born in 1968 and died in 1999); Peter Tazvida (vocals, bass; who was born in 1972 and died in 2002); Lee Roy Lunga (guitar; born: 1974); Lucky Mumiriki (percussion; born: 1979), Boysen “Wezhira” Shoko (drums; who died in 2000)
System’s wife, Barbara, although not a musician, assisted her husband in song writing during their life together. Barbara, with the encouragement from the Minister of Media, Information and Publicity and musicians’ patron, Webster Shamu, has formed the Musicians’ Widows Association with the wives of other musicians who died in recent years, whose aim is to raise funds for the wives of the fallen musicians.

Although their first attempt at raising funds was not successful, they have a lot of support from musicians who would like to see a success story behind their efforts.
The surviving members of the Chazezesa Challengers, Lucky and Lee Roy, operate a variety of community projects in Zimbabwe. In addition to operating their own soccer team for the unemployed, the group owns and runs a children’s club, their own studios, and motor vehicle repair business.

They have defied all odds to face the challenges of life, and resilience is the key word in their lives. Nothing ventured, nothing gained!