adminNkululeko Nkala
They have been in the industry for slightly over five years, but their name rings wide and loud.
They chose a predominantly male genre, accapella, and made it their own (another broken rule).
The word king usually refers to a male ruler. The world now calls Beyonce Knowles King and Nobuntu are definitely a�?kinging ita�?.
A few weeks ago, I would have sworn that Impumelelo Shining Stars where the current kings. Now I am not so sure, becauseA� I am a sucker for harmony a�� the baritone, turner, alto and bass. In Nobuntua��s case I would add soprano as the highest part.
These girls remind me of the legendary group Black Voices. They take any song and make it their own and in an amazing way. Last weekend on the 11th of June they launched their latest album Ekhaya at the National Art Gallery.
The event was mind blowing. Who is Nobuntu? They are an accapella outfit comprising of Joyline Sibanda, Duduzile Sibanda, Zanele Manhenga and Heather Dube. The ladies are ably led by Tswarelo Mothobi and Ramadu of Insingizi who are the management for Nobuntua��s parent company 10th District.
I was obviously taken by their performance and tried to zoom in on their strengths as individuals.
Thandeka has been there with the group for slightly over two years, I honestly considered her a replacement for the former members who left alongside with Zanele. She sings soprano and does leads for some of their songs.
Her strength is more on the emotion side, she can take you through the emotions of every song, own each and every song she leads. You can pick her out and just watch and still feel you are watching the whole group.
Zanele Manhenga is sister to Dudu Manhenga. That family is musical goes without saying. Zanele has very good language delivery, she is the balance for everything the group has to say.
She is one of the harmony ladies singing the sweeter parts, though not much of a dancer, she stands her own. She compliments Thandeka very well. Heather Dube is the in your face veteran in the group, that face you think I have seen before (you probably have). She was with Amawumbo and Kwabatsha before doing a lot of freelancing. She sings leads and is the outfits best dancer.
Joyline is not the in your face superstar like Ronaldo or Lionel Messi. She is the balance of the outfit, singing the balancing tone. More like your Makalele or Arsenals Couquelin. The kind of voice that holds things together.
Before I go to the last member of the outfit I need to mention that their album which I would have loved to review with this article is a must have. The album has 14 tracks and is a mixture of accapella and percussion.
It features their number one hit track a�?Narinia�� which is being played on Ztv and Dstv channels. The song is in ChiShona but rides over an amabhiza beat.
Anyway the final member of Nobuntu is Duduzile. She has an amazing voice as she does the lead vocals for some songs. I hear she writes good music too. But the most amazing thing about her is that she sings bass and does it better than most men I know. Nobuntua��s CD is a must have and their shows are a must watch.
They are embarking on a tour which takes them to Harare this weekend and Vic Falls the next. Until next week, be safe!
Online Reporter