Wenslus Murape
Mathew Masinge
SELMOR Mtukudzi says she has had enough of being treated as an outcast of the Mtukudzi family by her stepmother, Daisy, and the explosion of her emotions on the stage in Norton on Saturday night was just a culmination of the emotional pain she has been forced to endure over the years.
Her homecoming show, her first appearance at Pakare Paye Arts Centre since the death of her legendary father Oliver five years ago, ended in just minutes as the emotions, which she has been trying to contain, exploded on stage on Saturday night.
Selmor was initially excluded from performing at the inaugural Oliver Mtukudzi International Festival of the Arts before a furious backlash from fans forced the organisers to include her in the line-up, was scheduled to be the star performer on the opening day of the show.
For years, Selmor’s relationship with Tuku’s widow, Daisy, has been a strained one.
And, on the occasion a window was opened for the two to discuss and possibly resolve their differences, as musicians and fans converged in Norton to celebrate the life of the immortal Tuku, things did not go according to plans.
This was the only time Selmor has stepped onto the Pakare Paye stage after Tuku’s death in January 2019.
She told fans that she had been denied a chance to perform at the venue for many years.
“I have always wanted to perform on this stage for many years, but ndichirambidzwa.
“Dai pasina imi makandirwira kuti nditsike pano ndingadai ndisati nanhasi.
“Hameno kana vakafa vachinzwa asi mudhara wangu vakashanda vakativakira nzvimbo yakanaka kudai, asi zvavaida hazvizirizvo zvirikuitika nhasi, hazvisi,” said Selmor.
She added:
“Tosvika rinhiko muchindirwira nhai hama dzangu, ndosvika rinhi ndichibatwa senge ndisiri mwana wepanapa?”
Then, she dropped the microphone and as her team tried to console her, she decided to call it quits and walk away from the stage.
This was despite pleas from some of her fans who pleaded with her to forget the controversy and just perform to honour the memory of her iconic father.
She failed to contain her emotions and couldn’t even finish performing her rendition of Tuku’s “Changu Chii?”
“Changu chiko nhai Mwari?
“Changu chii ko?
“Chitema here kuve mukadzi?
“Changu chii ko?” she sang.
She only performed three verses, alongside Tuku’s trusted lieutenant Picky Kasamba, and her sister Sandra, before she broke down on stage.
She then left the venue despite efforts by some promoters, who had rushed backstage to try and convince her to calm down and get back on stage to complete her set.
She said:
“It’s hard to live knowing you’re being treated as an outcast in your father’s house. I tried so many times to hold this back, but I can’t let it continue like this.
“I was only at the festival because Uncle Josh (promoter Josh Hozheri) asked me to, but my emotions came back at me. This is wrong. This is not how you treat your stepchildren, tese tiri vanhu.”
Some fans, who attended the opening night, also felt Selmor should have been slotted in to play on the closing night with heavyweights like Jah Prayzah, Feli Nandi, Gemma Griffiths, Mokoomba, among others.
Tickets for the first day, which had Killer T and Andy Muridzo as the main attractions, cost US$10.
Tickets for the second day, which had heavyweights like Jah Prayzah, cost US$15.
In an earlier interview, Daisy had confirmed the tiff between her and Selmor. She accused her stepdaughter of being naive, hard to associate with and not picking up calls from event organisers.
Selmor and Sandra are Tuku’s daughters, from his first marriage, and the iconic musician left most of his assets in the hands of his widow Daisy. This includes cars, the rights to the music and the Pakare Paye Arts Centre.
Daisy, though, allowed Selmor to continue performing her father’s songs. Selmor has established herself as an artist and has a good support base.
Online Reporter