Evolution of Tuku music

Tuku speaks at length about the progression of his music since the 1970s when he started playing in clubs in Harare to date when he has become an international star with a huge following cutting across the United States to Asia, Europe to Australia and Africa. In this question and answer interview with tukumusic.com mid February Tuku also shares his feelings why he does not dabble in partisan politics.

Question: Being produced by West Nkosi (South Africa) in your early days, would you say your music had therefore some South African influence?

Answer: I don’t think the influence of South Africa was there. It’s just that I introduced the keyboard in my music. And South Africans then were using the keyboard a lot in their music. So when I introduced the keyboard people said West Nkosi was influencing me. One thing about our music and South African music is that the music is the same, really. If it weren’t for a handful of people who created these geographical boundaries we would be the same people in many respects. West Nkosi came to produce me because he was looking for new sound and if he was to influence my music he was going to get the same sound that he was running away from in South Africa. He wanted fresh music so he got me, Zexie Manatsa, Susan Mapfumo…all of us.

Q: How would you describe your music after you parted ways with West Nkosi?

A: My music basically continued to be the same after Nkosi had left. The only difference is that I introduced more guitars, less this and that and more of this and that.

Q: In terms of lyrical composition what was your thrust in pre-independence?

A: Before independence (Zimbabwe’s independence 18 April 1980) it was the fight against the regime. My music then spoke against oppression and the repressive regime and how we were suffering at the hands of the regime. I left school and for three years I couldn’t find a job yet I was one of the few guys among my peers with a fine secondary education. But I couldn’t get a job because I was black. My music then helped people identify themselves…who we were and what we wanted to be.

Q: But your lyrics were vague politically and you were never open neither were you militant and confrontational like the likes of Thomas Mapfumo and Tineyi Chikupo. Were you afraid?

A:  I wasn’t afraid of anyone. No, I wasn’t afraid, at all. The beauty of the shona language is that it is endowed with all those rich idioms and metaphor…and the beauty of art is that you can use the power of language to craft a particular way of communicating something without necessarily giving it away. So I used the beauty of shona to communicate in my own unique way and people got the message, even the regime knew I was having a go at them. One had to listen to the lyrics to get the message.

Q: How has your music evolved, if at all, at independence and post independence?

A: At independence I did praise songs just like most of the artists that era because it was justifiably celebration time for the nation. I did songs like Zimbabwe that was celebratory music…songs like Gore reMasimba eVanhu (Year of the People’s Power). I was celebrating the demise of the regime and the coming in of black majority rule. But over and above celebrating I was also singing about self-discipline and restraint in that new era be it at social or political level.

Q: Now Zimbabwe is going through its worst socio-political and economic times. How are you reflecting on the prevailing situation, if at all, as an artist?

A: I am still singing about self-discipline and the need to respect the next person…the same discipline I have been singing about before independence…discipline at family level, at social level, at national level…that is the underlying message in my music.

Q: You have not dabbled in partisan politics. Does that explain how you have steered away from the political controversies and market backlash that partisan artists have suffered by brazenly aligning themselves with political sides?

A: I have done my job well as an artist…I represent Zimbabweans regardless of their political orientation, regardless of religion…I represent them all. People of divergent political beliefs come to my shows and they sing and dance together in harmony. I don’t have any special Zimbabwean that I stand for…I stand for all Zimbabweans. That is what I am, that is what my music is. I don’t dabble in partisan politics because I serve everyone and all Zimbabweans.

Q: How have you received the honor by the Zimbabwe government being officially recognized as Zimbabwe’s music ambassador?

A: I have been a music ambassador since the first day I started playing music. As long as you are a Zimbabwean artist you are an ambassador of Zimbabwe. You don’t need an award or badge of honor to be recognized as an ambassador. Even artists who haven’t toured abroad are still music ambassadors because music is international, it’s not confined to our borders. Even when and where I don’t say a single thing to promote Zimbabwe abroad my music, by its nature, speaks about our country, our people and our beauty as a nation.

Q: You are now tuning more into traditional musical instruments such as the mbira and marimba and you have done away with the keyboard that defined your beat in your early years in music. Is this part of the evolution of your music…are we seeing a new brand of music from you? Are you experimenting with sound or you are trying to come up with new music altogether?

A: Since I started playing music I have always been influenced by traditional instruments unlike today’s youngsters who feel inferior associating with our own traditional instruments. So I said I should inspire the youngsters and show them the beauty of our traditional instruments and how the instruments can play any other kind of music. This change will inspire the younger generation of artists and make them proud of our traditional instruments. And, after all, the world out there is looking for more of our authentic traditional Zimbabwean music. Lets give them the music.

Q: Your music is called Tuku music…but what exactly is Tuku music and how do you define Tuku music?

A: I was the last person to know that my music is called Tuku music. I knew my music was simply African music but it was actually my fans that labeled it Tuku music. And in my research with the fans they said my music was uniquely influenced by the mbira, there is jiti, there is tsavatsava, katekwe, there is dinhe…it might be a ballad but you can feel those elements. So they labeled it uniquely Tuku music.

Q: How are fans responding to the fusion of traditional instruments in your music?

A: People were surprised I could play the same music with traditional instruments just as good as I did with electrical instruments and how the music still sounded the same and very fresh. But initially fans were a bit skeptical about the development…yet the change was simply facial on stage in terms of the composition of instruments but the music was basically still the same. - tukumusic.com