Chronicle Editor
Bongani Ndlovu, Showbiz Correspondent
“YOUNG man, you have exactly a minute to ask me questions and for me to answer them!”
This was what the late superstar Oliver ‘Tuku’ Mtukudzi said with a husky voice when he granted me an interview during the 2014 edition of the Ibumba Festival in Makokoba after a sterling performance at Stanley Square in Bulawayo.
The setting was the Ibumba office that was being run by the then director, Saimon Mambazo Phiri who had set up the interview. I waited nervously excited in the office for Nzou to come and collect his things, speak to me and leave for his hotel room. He was the highlight of Ibumba Festival that year.
I had so much to ask him like what was he thinking when he sang Dzikama Wakura and using the cat call, Pss Pss in a song, how he felt about performing at Stanley Square after over 20 years and also throw in one or two personal questions.
Another thing at the back of my mind was his Tuku Music album (released in 1999) that I fell in love with. I wanted to find out how he came up with all those songs that could touch a Form Three pupil at Milton High School like myself.
Eventually, the lanky Tuku walked into the office accompanied by Mambazo and his management and shook my hand after introductions. So, I started off with the obvious one — how he felt after performing at Stanley Square and what memories flooded his mind from the last time he was at that venue — to pamper his ego. Well that hit a brick wall! He looked at me with this scowl as if offended and said: “Oh yes, it’s exciting!”
Before I could ask him a follow-up question, he looked at me and said, well, young man, your one minute is up and he left! Just like that! This man! I didn’t know what to feel — embarrassment, anger or disappointment but the impression I was left with was that of Tuku as a snob!
After he left, I remembered a conversation I had during my year as a student on attachment at the Chronicle where the then Entertainment Editor, Daisy Jeremani once said to me that the day you get a chance to interview Tuku, you’d find him hard to talk to! Her words flooded my memory as they had played out true just some minutes before. Oh well! Tuku had just welcomed me to the world of showbiz where you find all sorts of people, friendly artistes, rude, snobbish and hard to please and talk to. That is what I found out throughout the years.
This led me to my second encounter with Tuku and it was a year before his death. It was during the Spring Feelings Jazz Festival build up. He was performing with Bekezela and the Outfit Band at the Bulawayo Large City Hall. It was on a Friday, the 6th of September in 2018. After an interview at Skyz Metro FM with Babongile Sikhonjwa, Tuku met me and colleagues Bruce Ndlovu and photographer Mgcini Nyoni at Haefelis for a one on one. I then remembered my first encounter with this man. I was in combative mood, I wouldn’t take no for an answer and wouldn’t take one worded answers. Certainly, I wouldn’t take all this nonsense of being given one minute to ask questions and for him to answer the questions, I told myself.
He entered the restaurant and as expected, was immediately swarmed by fans wanting to greet, take selfies and so on with him.
After some minutes with the fans, he turned his attention to us and politely greeted us with a hello and a beaming smile. And for the rest of the interview, Tuku was surprisingly friendly, answered every question we had, even cracking jokes, teasing his entourage and us in the process.
During that time, Tuku’s former manager, Shepard Mutamba had released a book about Tuku Backstage and so much had been said about Tuku’s life in the book. Naturally, we wanted to hear what he felt about this book of which he responded: “I’ve never read the book (Backstage) and he (Mutamba) has never given me the book. I just know that he wrote a book (about me), but I don’t know the contents of that said book.
“I’ve never met him after because he disappeared and he’s nowhere to be seen.”
We milked him dry! No time limits, no one worded answers and no scowls. During the interview, he was very comfortable with us as Mgcini Nyoni captured this interaction through his lense.
When Tuku died on January 23, I reflected on that last interview I had with him and remembered how he was in such a jovial mood that day. I then realised that he wanted to teach me that interviews with superstars aren’t granted because you want them at any time. His time was precious and he wanted me to realise that I should earn it.
When I wanted to ask him questions six years ago at Ibumba, I was just a year into my arts reporting. For him I believe, I was not yet ready to have a sit down with Nzou!
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