adminNgoni Dapira
IN 2007 when he took over his late father’s Dendera music legacy, little know Sulumani Chimbetu back then had big shoes to fit in. It seemed like an insurmountable undertaking which garnered so much criticism with most pundits thinking the worst of the young man who had set out to preserve his father Simon ‘Chopper’ Chimbetu’s brilliant legacy as the father of Dendera music.
It is now eight years since then and Sulu as he is affectionately known now has five albums to his name and is a multi-National Arts Merit Awards winner.
The Weekender caught up with the Dendera star on Sunday after his family show at the Platinum (formerly Pick and Save) in Mutare.
While some descendents of musical greats like Peter Moyo and the Dembo brothers (Morgan and Tendai) are still struggling to stamp authority or exceed their late father’s legacies, Sulu has now proved to be a cut above the rest.
Sulu, who is still flying high with his latest album, Gunship, released last year in November, said he was now ready to take the Dendera genre to the next level.
“My father used to be innovative, always trying to sound different in every album and that is what I am also doing. Since 1987 until present day in 2015, Dendera cannot remain the same.
“So many people now play Dendera, but I want to take it to the next level which is why I have been doing collaborations putting to test diverse fusions with other genres,” he said.
On Gunship there are collaborations like Nyuchi featuring Zimdancehall chanter Soul Jah Luv and Idah Nhoro featuring superstar Oliver Mtukudzi, which shows his innovativeness.
Sulu said he has now come of age and is now beyond the sympathy plane from his father’s old Dendera fans.
Sulu currently has 12 corporate endorsement deals and is among the few local musicians who can boast of having numerous corporate endorsement deals.
He added that this year he would work on his third DVD album for Gunship and is already working on a sixth album which will be out before end of the year.
Sulu’s publicist Joe Nyamungoma said the family show was part of their ongoing countrywide tours for Sulu to meet his growing legion of fans.
Nyamungoma said it was a busy weekend after staging shows in Masvingo on Friday, Chiredzi on Saturday afternoon, Chipinge on Saturday evening and Mutare on Sunday.
Soul Jah Luv also performed at the Mutare family show on Sunday.
Sulu and Soul Jah Luv got the crowd ecstatic when they performed together their collaboration Nyuchi which has gone viral on the local airwaves.
Online Reporter