Mokoomba joins Tuku, Mapfumo in Hall of Fame

Bruce Ndlovu
GLOBE-TROTTING Victoria Falls fusion band, Mokoomba, is set to join illustrious compatriots Oliver Mtukudzi and Thomas Mapfumo as inductees in the Afro-pop Hall of Fame when they perform at City Winery in New York City next month.

Mokoomba and Honduran musician Aurelio Martinez will be inducted into the Hall of Fame when Afropop Worldwide celebrates its 30th anniversary on 3 May.

Past inductees include titans of music from Africa and the diaspora including King Sunny Ade, Youssou N’Dour, Oumou Sangare, Angelique Kidjo, Habib Koite, Harry Belafonte, Oliver Mtukudzi and Thomas Mapfumo.

Afropop Worldwide is a weekly radio programme, website and podcast series which tasked itself with unearthing and revealing the essential music and stories of Africa and the African diaspora, regarded largely as the unacknowledged roots of the world’s greatest pop music traditions.

Artistes, staff, fans, leaders in the media, business, technology and philanthropists will come together to celebrate Afropop’s 30th anniversary at a gala benefit with honorary co-chairs including Harry Belafonte, Angelique Kidjo and Bonnie Raitt set to grace the occasion.

Although they are yet to find fame at home, Mokoomba has become a favourite in foreign stages for a brand of music that exhibits Zimbabwe’s multi-cultural diversity.

“Mokoomba is one the most exciting bands to come out of Africa in the 21st century,” Afropop Worldwide said of the group on its website.

“This explosively talented six-man crew from northern Zimbabwe has toured over 40 countries on five continents, and performed at the world’s most prestigious international festivals and venues, including New York’s Apollo Theater.

“Zimbabwe’s best-known musical icons, Thomas Mapfumo and Oliver Mtukudzi, exemplify the culture of the country’s Shona majority. But Mokoomba’s music is rooted in the Tonga, Luvale and Nyanja rhythms and melodies from Victoria Falls, where these six grew up together, friends since childhood.”