Online Reporter
Latwell Nyangu
Musician and entrepreneur Teemak, real name Tawona Ozwell Chipunza, has bounced back onto the scene.
The once music promoter went into a hiatus around 2016 following a controversial financial business spell.
Reports were that he defrauded his partners and clients in a forex trading business. He has however, cleared the air that he has no pending warrant of arrest neither a court case but is in the process of making amends with disgruntled parties.
Speaking during a press conference to mark his return with a new project Mavambo, he blamed young age and failure to balance.
“I believe the primary problem came from my lack of ability to understand the true functioning capacity of humans when they are in the presence of an opportunity.
“The second problem came from my own inadequacies, I could have done better in many opportunities.
“I got involved in too many things that I couldn’t manage and by that time, I was 23 years.
“The balance between pursuing a career and also running a business whose lives depend on you.
“That balance, I failed to make it happen.
“I did the very best I could and the knowledge I had but unfortunately, I couldn’t make it happening.
“So, the consequences of that inferiority complex that I projected in the process of me attaining a big vision that led to the complexities of the business crumbling.”
“If you are in the business of finance, people rely on and trust you.
“People look up to you, you will be more like a demi-god, and the day that you let them down, the pain is very deep that they would want to see you crush to the ground.
‘So, that is what transpired to what caused my business to fail and what eventually led me to lose amounts of dollars since I was the custodian,” he added.
Teemak also said, the courts issues were exaggerated.
“I believe the narrative that was later derived from all these, was a bit exaggerated. “I didn’t have any court cases up until recently which we are trying to resolve with my friend, who opened a case against me.
“The rest of the people , it’s mostly propaganda, that I owed them millions of dollars. I have attempted to make sure that everybody is paid back according to how much they invested.
“We have put the necessary agreements with these people to make sure they get their money back.
“It is still a big challenge because the pain I went through was very tremendous and I believe that most of that pain has been channeled to the music.
“It is very difficult to be the person that you had so many created tensions but you did everything in your power, but you still failed.
“Not failing yourself but the multitudes of people who had faith in you. But this is the beginning because even in the realm of business, my currently line of work is not public work but to grow as an artist,” he said. The businessman who now resides in the UAE said the project is a new beginning.
“The title comes back from the year 2008, when my father purchased a vehicle and customised it Mavambo akanaka, it was a good beginning for my family that time.
“I always believe that something great can come from something bad. So, when I was contemplating my project, I just thought of mavambo akanaka,” said Teemak.
He said the new project is a package for both Zimbabwe and international market.
“On Mavambo, I put together what I believe is Zimbabwe and something foreign. I have been trying to find a gap to have a sound that feels like home but that can be exported.
“I only chose six songs out of the hundreds of songs that I have recorded in the past four years.
“I chose the love songs and we have six videos we did in Nigeria.
“Video directed by a Nigeran producer.
“We are starting with the two songs, Painful and Something Special.” His urged youths to believe in God.
“I believe the most important attribute is faith.
“Having faith in God is very important, and I move with David Mafunga’s song, Kubata kwaMwari,” added Teemak.
His passion for music began at an early age.
“My passion for music began at the very early age.
“And my trip to Zimbabwe was in 2015 when I launched my first song, where I had not found my singing abilities.
“To 2020, we had an agreement with Enzo due to a long standing relationship musically.
“That’s how I signed Enzo, two brothers working together and we have been working together in the early days of his career.
“The vision was to make a proof of concept that the Zimbabwean industry deserve a wider market.”
National Arts Council Communications Officer Agga Nyabinde commended Tee Mak’s comeback.
“As National Arts Council, our work is to foster an environment that enables artists to thrive and make money out of them.
“One of the things that we are preaching this year, is professionalism and we can all testify that Teemak is leading by example in everything he does in his art.
“He takes it as business, the branding, the launch and also coming back home sharing with others.
“We have seen a lot of support from other artists,” he said.
While Enzo also hailed Teemak’s comeback.
“We are back again. I am happy to see my brother is back. We all thought he was gone for good.
“Judging from how he presents his works, pachapisa, malyrics, videos, production is international.
“I am proud of the artist he has become as a complete package, I am sure you will not be disappointed.”
Mathew Masinge