Chronicle Editor
Mkhululi Ncube, Chronicle Reporter
Many know him as Mdlambanje, a nickname he inherited from his grandfather but music fans know him for his antics with a bicycle wheel. Born in Simana village in Silobela, Midlands Province, Trymore Ngwenya popularly known as Mdlambanje, thrills fans with bicycle wheel antics when rhumba musician Clement Magwaza and his Macrey Super Sounds are on stage. His theatrics give Magwaza’s band an edge over others whenever they are sharing a stage.
“I was in Grade Five and my brother sent me to collect a bicycle rim which was being repaired at a neighbouring homestead. After collecting it like any other child I started playing with it and when I got home it was bent. My brother was not happy but I had fallen in love with the wheel and never looked back,” said Mdlambanje.
He said he started playing antics with the rim while playing Mokis Connection songs on the family Omega Radio. “I later trained my uncle`s son who is now late. My mother was initially not happy with it, saying the antics I was doing were going to harm me but I did not stop. We performed at parties but my first crowd performance was at my teacher’s wedding in 1996 and we thrilled the crowd with the wheel,” he said.
Mdlambanje says initially people thought that he was using some “muti” as his grandfather was a known traditional healer and some people believed he was a magician. He however said his acts come with a “do not try this at home” warning as he has suffered many injuries. On stage the nimble footed dancer says things sometimes go wrong and he gets injured. “It is a dangerous act, believe you me, I have many scars of injuries. It takes serious practice to master it. Even during live shows I get injured because any slight mistake the wheel can inflict serious damage. Once I get injured, we have a way of handling the situation so that fans do not pick up on things that have gone wrong,” he said.
Mdlambanje says he dropped out of school while doing Form Three when his mother could not afford to pay school fees. “I used to play soccer and I was good at it in school. I was perfect in all the extracurricular activities at school. My uncle, who is a builder, took me to Bulawayo to work with him.
He taught me how to drive and I used to transport building materials to different places around the city. Dancing has however been part of me so I joined a pantsula dance group called Lokishin Cousins in Nketa 9 suburb and we performed at bars and I enjoyed dancing to rhumba music,” he said.
His first break with big names was when he was roped in by Obadiah Matulane of the Jets sounds band who was so impressed with his act that he gave him accommodation. Before that ,musicians such as Chase Skuza had also shown interest in signing him but Matulane had an edge as his son was his friend.
“I stayed at his house and played for him for two years and we would perform in many places. I remember we even went to South Africa and we were staying in Orange Grove emakhaya, which is where we rented a place to stay while in South Africa. I then left umdala and moved back home to join Ndux Junior through his bassist Mjapan who is a friend of mine. I stayed there for about two years and moved on again,” he said.
Mdlambanje said since he joined Magwaza, he has become a crowd puller because of his bicycle wheel antics. He does not however remember much about dates but recalls he joined Magwaza when he released the hit Istambo sami album. “My uncle’s son called Mazinyane was already dancing for Magwaza and he is the one who lured me to join the band. I have played with him for a number of years now and yes I am very well known by members of the public in terms of what I do on stage. What, however, pains me is that angila lutho ngitsho to show for this talent. I hope one day I will be able to benefit financially from it because imali akula,” lamented Mdlambanje. @themkhust
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