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Black Umfolosi coming to Key City March 15
The longevity of Zimbabwe’s oldest imbube acapella outfit, Black Umfolosi, is worth shouting from the top of the mountain.
The group has been together for 36 years, making it two years junior to independent Zimbabwe which celebrates its 38th anniversary. So successful has been the group that it has been able to tour most parts of the world establishing itself as a true African musical ambassador. Audiences that have watched them perform acknowledge the exciting blend of African dance and beautifully-crafted acapella harmony singing that has attracted crowds all over the world. They have released eight albums to date.
Black Umfolosi, now includes seven members, with Sotsha Moyo and Tomeki Dube who are founding members and who co-lead the group. The secret of the group remaining united for more than three decades was that they got into the arts not for monetary benefits but for the love and passion for arts. Black Umfolosi was formed in 1982 at school by friends getting together through arts for fun.
As member Moyo says, “I can say this project was a journey of schoolmates which later turned into something we never imagined. It was in 1982 while at George Silundika Secondary School in Nyamandlovu that as mates, we started singing imbube. We just did it out of absolute fun and entertainment. The group started out large with 32 students and teachers who would come and listen to us singing.”
The group began their regional tours in 1987 and European tours in 1990.
“In 1987 while performing at the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair a guy by the name John Benedict approached us and said that our performance was wonderful and that he had liked it. After that he invited us to Swaziland,” reminisced Moyo.
Black Umfolosi hopes to see the imbube genre of music growing though it has not been as visible in recent years after being overshadowed by genres like sungura, hip hop and house music. They are sure that they will gain many new followers on their current tour that stops at Cranbrook’s Key City Theatre Thursday, March 15 at 7:30 p.m.
Tickets are available at the Key City Theatre Box Office and online.
Submitted
