Chiwoniso is the daughter of Dumisani Maraire, an early spark and driving force in the Shona music movement in America. From his arrival in Olympia, Washington, in the late ‘60s until his untimely death in 1999, Dumi (as he was known) inspired Americans to learn to play mbira (Shona hand piano), to build marimbas and form ensembles to perform traditional and modern music, and to travel to Zimbabwe to study with, record, and develop the careers of traditional music masters there. While all this was going on, Dumi also raised a bi-cultural family. His children learned to be as comfortable with Zimbabwean traditions as they were with the jazz, pop and other musical/cultural realms that surrounded them in America. Chiwoniso fondly recalls her father’s joy any time his kids delved into his vast record collection to listen and learn for themselves.
Chiwoniso went on to live in Zimbabwe and nurture her African heritage. She helped form an innovative band called Piece of Ebony, and that group’s success led directly to the recording of her debut CD, Ancient Voices (Lusafrica/Tinder) in 1999. It was a knockout, revealing a talented mbira player, a gifted composer, and above all a singer with the ability to morph the idiosyncrasies of ancient, Shona religious vocalizations with the thrill of R&B belting and a confident command of soul and pop vocal dioms. She went on to self-produce a largely acoustic album called Timeless (2004), and to perform and travel in various performance settings from her base in Harare. She did this all through the turmoil of that country’s political and economic descent in recent years.
Over three years in the making, Rebel Woman culminates these experiences in a set of twelve songs that draw on Shona tradition (“Pamuromo”) and pay homage to the sounds created by Zimbabwean pop legends Oliver Mtukudzi (“Nguva Ye Kufara” and “Listen to The Breeze”) and Thomas Mapfumo (“Matsotsi” and “Irobukairo”), even as they forge new stylistic ground. Working with long-time collaborator, keyboardist and producer Keith Farquarson, Chiwoniso has assembled a dream band that includes maverick African guitarist Louis Mhlanga and a crack brass section led by Steve Dyer in Johannesburg. Rebel Woman was recorded in Zimbabwe, Germany, South Africa, England, and Vermont, and yet it has a compellingly unified sound, rich with layered vocals, punchy guitar riffs, percussion breakdowns, eloquent brass commentary, and the ubiquitous tonal plink of mbira. With this release, Zimbabwean music may need to acknowledge a new sub genre—call it Chi-Pop!
From the moment Chiwoniso unleashes her full-throated voice on the opening track, “Vanorapa,” this CD takes hold and doesn’t let go. The hypnotic, 12/8 mbira groove trades off with the brisk uplift of 4/4 songs, and more introspective balladry to create a beautifully arranged sonic and spiritual journey. She sings persuasively in English on four tracks, including a South African-tinged lullaby “Listen to the Breeze,” and the title track, which concludes the set in a reflective mode, paring the accompaniment down to feature mbira and acoustic guitar.
The song “Rebel Woman” celebrates the contribution of women to Zimbabwe’s liberation struggle, and inevitably raises the notion of Chiwoniso herself as a figure of rebellion in today’s Zimbabwe. Chiwoniso is not a political singer, certainly not to the extent of Mapfumo. In 2001, a time when Mapfumo had already gone into self-imposed exile in the U.S., she created two radio jingles in support of the Zimbabwean government’s land redistribution campaign, although she quickly withdrew them. Chiwoniso continues to believe in the goals of land redistribution, but these jingles veered too close to participation in party politics, dangerous territory for any popular singer, especially in Africa. More recently, her song “Matotsi,” which laments the privations of life in a “land of thieves,” earned her a fierce interrogation by Zimbabwean police. In a land where free political expression is so tightly restrained, the definition of “rebellion” can be subtle. The rebellion Chiwoniso most strongly embraces is the cause of children. In the song “Only One World,” she poses a question that has to be provocative for Zimbabwean leaders today: “What shall we leave these children?”
With the release of Rebel Woman, Chiwoniso has moved back to the United States, and is beginning to tour with a band out of Seattle, organized by her older brother Tendai, and including one of her sisters. Click here for fall 2008 Chiwoniso tour dates.
Chiwoniso is the daughter of Dumisani Maraire, an early spark and driving force in the Shona music movement in America. From his arrival in Olympia, Washington, in the late ‘60s until his untimely death in 1999, Dumi (as he was known) inspired Americans to learn to play mbira (Shona hand piano), to build marimbas and form ensembles to perform traditional and modern music, and to travel to Zimbabwe to study with, record, and develop the careers of traditional music masters there. While all this was going on, Dumi also raised a bi-cultural family. His children learned to be as comfortable with Zimbabwean traditions as they were with the jazz, pop and other musical/cultural realms that surrounded them in America. Chiwoniso fondly recalls her father’s joy any time his kids delved into his vast record collection to listen and learn for themselves. 