John Chibadura (1957–1999) was a

Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...

an guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He was a member of pioneering

sungura Zimbabwean music is heavily reliant on the use of instruments such as the mbira, Ngoma drums and Hosho (instrument), hosho. Their music symbolizes much more than a simple rhythm, as the folk and pop style styled music was used as a symbol of ho ...

group The Sungura Boys, and found great success in Zimbabwe and Mozambique with his band The Tembo Brothers and as a solo artist.

Early life

Chibadura was born John Nyamukokoko on 17 February 1957 in

Bindura District Bindura is one of seven districts in the Mashonaland Central province of Zimbabwe. The district capital is the town of Bindura Bindura is a city in the province of Mashonaland Central province, Zimbabwe. It is located in the Mazowe Valley abo ...

Southern Rhodesia Southern Rhodesia was a self-governing British Crown colony in Southern Africa, established in 1923 and consisting of British South Africa Company (BSAC) territories lying south of the Zambezi River. The region was informally known as South ...

(now

). Chibadura's parents were migrant workers from

Mozambique Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique, is a country located in Southeast Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west, and Eswatini and South Afr ...

, and his mother died in 1962. His father remarried, and Chibadura's stepmother had him live with his grandfather, who played the

mbira Mbira ( ; ) are a family of musical instruments, traditional to the Shona people of Zimbabwe. They consist of a wooden board (often fitted with a resonator) with attached staggered metal Tine (structural), tines, played by holding the instrument ...

. As a child Chibadura took care of his father's goats, and on finishing school he worked as a truck driver.

Musical career

Chibadura began learning banjo in 1968. In 1980 he moved to

Harare Harare ( ), formerly Salisbury, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Zimbabwe. The city proper has an area of , a population of 1,849,600 as of the 2022 Zimbabwe census, 2022 census and an estimated 2,487,209 people in its metrop ...

, where he lived in the town of

Chitungwiza Chitungwiza is the third populous urban centre in Zimbabwe and town of Harare Province in Zimbabwe. It is located on the outskirts of Harare. History As of the 2022 census, Chitungwiza had a population of 371,244. There are two main highwa ...

that later gave him his nickname "Mr Chitungwiza". In Harare he joined Ephraim Joe's band the Sungura Boys as lead singer, appearing on the album ''John and The Sungura Boys'' in 1984. Nhamo Anthony Mhiripiri writes that "The Sungura Boys...is generally thought to be the first 'institution' of sungura music that nurtured and developed most future sungura stars including John Chibadura". Chibadura's band the Tembo Brothers, formed in 1985, were one of the most successful Zimbabwean

rumba The term rumba may refer to a variety of unrelated music styles. Originally, "rumba" was used as a synonym for "party" in northern Cuba, and by the late 19th century it was used to denote the complex of secular music styles known as Cuban rumba ...

bands of the 1980s and 90s, and toured

the UK The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

twice. They were also extremely popular in Mozambique, where they played to crowds of 40 thousand people and met Mozambican President

Joaquim Chissano Joaquim Alberto Chissano (born 22 October 1939) is a Mozambican politician who served as the second President of Mozambique, from 1986 to 2005. He is credited with transforming the war-torn country of Mozambique into a successful African democra ...

several times. In the 1990s Chibadura became ill and had to mortgage his property and sell his possessions to pay for treatment. He died on 4 August 1999, aged 42, and received a

pauper's funeral In the United Kingdom, a pauper's funeral was a funeral for a pauper paid for under the Poor Law. This policy addressed the condition of the poor people of Britain, such as those living in the workhouses, where a growing population of the Briti ...

Musical style and themes

Chibadura is primarily remembered as a player of

and, with his band the Tembo Brothers, of

Congolese rumba Congolese rumba, also known as African rumba, is a dance music genre originating from the Republic of the Congo (formerly French Congo) and Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire). With its rhythms, melodies, and lyrics, Congolese ru ...

. However Chibadura also incorporated traditional Zimbabwean music into his sound, making use of indigenous

Shona Shona often refers to: * Shona people, a Southern African people ** Shona language, a Bantu language spoken by Shona people today ** Shona languages, a wider group of languages defined in the early 20th century ** Kingdom of Zimbabwe, a Shona stat ...

drumming and

on tracks like "'Baya WaBaya" and "Nhamo Yatakawona", as well as recording music in the genre of

museve Zimbabwean music is heavily reliant on the use of instruments such as the mbira, Ngoma drums and Hosho (instrument), hosho. Their music symbolizes much more than a simple rhythm, as the folk and pop style styled music was used as a symbol of ho ...

. In the 1980s and 1990s Chibadura recorded several

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...

songs, some of which were compiled and released together in 2004. Chibadura is known for his "intense voice and achingly poignant lyrics," with themes of "downbeat misery: broken families, excessive dowries, ndwasted opportunities." His 1988 song "Zuva Rekufa Kwangu" (The Day I am Going to Die) includes the lyric "my God, I want to know the day of my death."

Discography

;Albums * ''John and The Sungura Boys'' (1984, Gramma Records),

cassette Cassette may refer to: Technology * Cassette (format) (or ''cassette tape''), a format that contains magnetic tape for audio, video, and data storage and playback * Compact Cassette, a worldwide standard for analog audio recording and playback ...

release with The Sungura Boys ;Compilations * ''The Best of John Chibadura'' (1986, Zimbabwe Music Corporation) * ''The Greatest Reggae Hits'' (2004)

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1957 births 1999 deaths 20th-century Zimbabwean musicians Zimbabwean reggae musicians People from Bindura