The Achuzi adventures that helped shape the group

Bongani Ndlovu, Showbiz Correspondent
Their most memorable show was when they hosted Miss Achuzi in their neighbourhood of Entumbane in Bulawayo in the 90s. Their worst encounter was being stranded in the border town of Beitbridge after a show.

These are some of the stories that helped shape one of Zimbabwe’s finest dance and music group, Achuzi.

Achuzi was formed by Unity “Mauzah” Moyo in 1996 with Trust Chimuti and Brilliant Nkosi (Maboyz) joining the group in 1997. Both left for South Africa, then Mauzah brought Fortune Fosta Ndlovu on board.

They teamed up with Go Boyz and recorded an album titled 2nd Half. Norman Ncube then joined in 1998 when Fosta left and together, they recruited Masauso Ngodzo in 2000. In 2001, the group released an album, Time is Money followed by Iskhukhula in 2004. In 2006 they released Put Foot (Faka unyawo).

Some of their tracks included Babheke Thina (Sjaiva Njenge Ehe), Igcikwane, Somlandela uJesu, Lomntwana Ngiyamthanda, Sphethi Local and Ezomhlaba.

The group recorded relative success in Bulawayo as one of the best dance crews in the city. It was a time that kwaito dance crews and dance routines were the norm, as in Mzansi where the likes of Trompies, Skeem, Cream and Odemaster were ruling the roost.

These groups started off doing dance routines and ended up giving their followers hit songs as they explored their talents and grew as groups.

So whatever was happening in South Africa’s entertainment industry was mirrored in the showbiz circles of Zimbabwe especially in Bulawayo. Besides Achuzi, there were groups such as Go Boyz, Amagangster, Stina and Skelem competing for the top spot in the city and country.

During those times, Achuzi released tracks, Sihleli Sizwisa (whose music video was shot in Harare) and Sekumanzonzo. These tracks were hits and were popular among school going kids as well. It was such hits which earned them bookings at several shows.

Reflecting on the formative years of the group, Mauzah said from all their tours and performances around the country, none can compare with Miss Achuzi back in 1998 at Entumbane Hall. For the pageant, they invited DJ Bobstar from Kalawa Jazmee with Ezra “Tshisa” Sibanda as an MC.

“The most memorable show is definitely Miss Achuzi 1998 although most shows were generally a blast. This was our own show in our hood Entumbane and the first. We wanted to give back to the community which had been supporting us by hosting a modelling and dancing show. The show was a success. It was packed and Bobstar was the main DJ using the newly shipped Radio Dialogue P/A System so you can imagine,” said Mauzah from his South Africa base.

He remembers Highlanders Football Club legend Zenzo “Zemura” Moyo being there as guest of honour. Zemura was a cult hero in Bulawayo because at that time, he was banging in the goals for Bosso.

“We performed before the announcement of Miss Achuzi and we brought the house down. We had Zenzo ‘Zemura’ Moyo presenting the crown to Nqobile Sibanda (Miss Achuzi 1998) and had a lot of support from many groups who were also our friends.

“We had the likes of Skelem, Go Boyz and Amagangster among others coming to support the event,” said Mauzah.

This showed them how much love people from their neighbourhood had for Achuzi as they came out in their droves to support their show.

During a radio interview with Kelvin “The Prince of the Airwaves” Ncube, back then, Mauzah said they learnt that their music reached as far as Mutare.

“During interviews, we’d give each other turns to respond to callers. So a young lady from Mutare called and said she loved our music and asked when were going to perform in her city. She also asked us to explain what Sekumanzonzo meant because she loved the song although she didn’t understand IsiNdebele.

“Norman was at pains to explain this. It was funny as he tried to use hand gestures to define Sekumanzonzo in English. He ended up saying Sekumanzonzo means Sekumanzonzo. We burst into laughter. I ended up explaining that it meant chaos,” said Mauzah.

He also narrated how at one time, they could afford to record their music video in Harare and stayed at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in the capital.

They however soon learnt how unforgiving the showbiz industry is.

Two years later, Achuzi was booked at the last minute by a promoter by the name Ms Bush to perform at Omadu Hotel in Beitbridge. Looking back, Mauzah laughed at what he and his crew members went through as he narrated the adventure, as he likes to describe their experiences.

“Iyasa was supposed to perform at the show, but perhaps they had a misunderstanding of some sort and pulled out. The show promoter, Ms Bush called me on a Friday asking that we come to Beitbridge the next day to perform.

“I told the guys about the show and they were up for it. When we got there, people were anticipating to see Iyasa and fortunately, we performed and thrilled them so everything was great. The promoter then promised to give us our performance fee in the morning,” said Mauzah.

He said come morning, Ms Bush had gone into hiding and they found themselves stranded as they needed transport money to return home. They only got relief when a cross-border transporter took pity and facilitated transport for them.

“When morning came, we looked high and low for her and she was nowhere to be seen. We left the hotel and went to the main road and started flagging down Omalayitsha whom we knew. That day, there weren’t any.

“I started calling them until I got hold of one who happened to be at the border. We were now hungry! Fortunately my Omalayitsha friend bought us food while we helped him pack his luggage at the border. He also gave us money for transport with some getting into his car,” said Mauzah.

Another adventure was when Achuzi was booked to perform in Maun, Botswana, but did not have the requisite papers. They had an agreement with the promoter that they would enter the border as visitors, perform and return to Zimbabwe. But alas, that was not to be.

“We once got booked to perform in Botswana at Maun. We were told by the promoters not to say that we were going to perform there. I don’t know what happened with one of our guys, whether it was excitement or what because when our passports had been stamped on the Botswana side, they leaked the information that we were performing there.

“At that point, immigration officers demanded a performance letter and since we didn’t have, they told us to go back to Zimbabwe. We sat there from 1PM until 6PM when the border closed hoping the organisers would fix the mess. We then went into the no man’s land and we met soldiers from Botswana who started making us dance at the border,” recounted Mauzah.

Their ordeal did not end there because after dancing, they travelled back to Victoria Falls where Lovemore Majaivana and Albert Nyathi were performing in the evening.

He said the two men abandoned them after hearing their plight. Stories like these, Mauzah said were what kept the group glued together for all these years. Mauzah believes that the group did not split, but is just working on different revenue streams. He said they are always in touch and do not spend two days without talking to each other.