DJ Gunz dies

DJ Gunz, real name Arthur Mtuke, died at Mater Dei Hospital on Saturday morning after a long illness and was buried yesterday at West Park Cemetery.

 

A sombre mood engulfed Mzilikazi as hundreds of people including local DJs gathered to bid farewell to their friend, business partner, brother and son.

Speaker after speaker described DJ Gunz as a humble and dedicated person who loved everyone.

Local DJs and those in entertainment who had come to bid farewell to DJ Gunz were, Joe tha OG, Emity Smooth, Mark Vusani, Slammer, Kid Wikead, Djembe Monks and his close friend Babongile Sikhonjwa.

In an interview with Chronicle Entertainment yesterday a distraught DJ Gunz’s brother Arnold said his death was a major blow to the family after having lost their father last year.

He said he had been ill since February and could not breathe properly.

“He had been sick for a while since February something to do with his throat and breathing. He was on oxygen and his condition deteriorated until his death on Saturday morning. As a family we had not recovered, as last year we lost our father and this year we have lost Arthur. It is saddening and shocking,” said Arnold.

He said DJ Gunz taught him a lot and he contributed immensely to the entertainment industry in Bulawayo.

“I believe we learnt a lot from DJ Gunz in terms of the entertainment industry in Bulawayo. He has left a legacy as an entertainment icon of the city,” said Arnold.

Popular Bulawayo DJ, Mthokozisi “Emity Smooth” Ncube said there was nothing that could fill the gap that DJ Gunz had left.

He said DJ Gunz was a professional whom he mentored and was down to earth when he was on the decks.

“He did not choose whether he is slotted at the beginning of a show or at the end, he just came and did the job as professionally as he could. I mentored him and he was in general a soft-spoken person,” said Emity Smooth.

He said DJ Gunz worked with all the prominent DJs in Bulawayo, showing how much he had contributed to the entertainment of the city.

When news about DJ Gunz’s death started to circulate on the social networks, people and fellow DJs expressed shock and disbelief at his passing.

Some said he died too soon and would be forever missed.

DJs Emity Smooth, Joe Tha OG, Slammer and Mark Vusani among others posted condolence messages on their Facebook walls.

Mark Vusani wrote “G.U.N.Z. God Bless His Soul.”

Born Arthur Mtuke, DJ Gunz, who was also known as Gunwilder completed his advanced level education at Founders High School in 2001.

DJ Gunz had been in the “game” for more than a decade and used his experience to keep revellers on their feet.

He had played at Visions Night Club now Club Forty 40, Kudu Bar and Jock and Saddle, Snappy’s, Paparazzi and Bulawayo Athletics Club (BAC).

In 2005 DJ Gunz met Sikhonjwa and the pair teamed up to form the Ballers League and became trendsetters in the city.

He started to play at BAC, then the famous Kudu Bar and then lately at Jock and Saddle.

DJ Gunz was the first born in a family of three, that comprises his brother, Arnold, and sister, Samantha.