Choral group destined for stars

Trust Khosa

KUWADZANA based choral group, Followers of Christ, has said it will use its music to preach the word of God.

The group is fronted by Bishop Ladwell Matanhike, 45, of Rugare Apostolic Church, and he believes gospel acapella appeals to many people.

Outlining his vision to H-Metro, Matanhike said it was never too early for non-believers to seek God.

“We started singing in church over a decade ago and we decided to form a group and are now recording.

“As a group, we have just released our ninth album titled Jesu Chiedza, which carries 12 tracks, namely ‘Nyaka Yashanduka’, ‘Jesu Mune Rudo’, ‘Kana Tichifamba Munzira’,  ‘Nzvimbo Yakanaka’, ‘Zvinopera Nekunamata’,  ‘Mweya Mutsvene’,  ‘Mambo Wemadzimambo’, ‘Ndadzoka’ and  ‘Ndiri Mwari’.

“We have since started shooting videos with the help of Brighton Magaya of Laktam Studios. He understands our vision and we are leaving the ball in his court to ensure that he helps us in our quest to come up with brilliant videos,” he said.

Matanhike said they will invest in visuals to win the hearts of many.

“We have realised that many people know our music and visuals will only increase its appeal.  Investing in visuals is the way forward as they sell a lot.

“As part of our ministry, the visuals will help make our jobs simple as people can easily get the messages we are preaching through visuals and videos if they are properly done.

“We will be guided by our videographer Baba Magaya because that’s his area of speciality where he has made a name for himself,” he said.

Magaya saluted Matanike for his professionalism. “I respect Bishop Matanhike for his conduct and work ethic. He is punctual and very religious in time keeping. If he says we are meeting at 1pm, he will be at the meeting point 15 minutes before the scheduled time. This is rare with a number of musicians who don’t respect time keeping. It’s really sad as some people don’t value time-keeping. I wish they could learn from these guys,” he said.

Besides their latest album  Jesu Chiedza, the group boasts of a rich catalogue of albums comprising their 2024 debut ‘‘Nyasha Parwendo’’,  ‘‘Zvarongwa Nashe’’, ‘‘Tiri Vawadzani’’,  ‘‘Tiri Munyasha’’,  ‘‘Ndiye Mwari’’, ‘‘Ishe Anesu’’, ‘‘Jesu Muponesi’’ and ‘‘Ngaavongwe Jesu’’.