Kelvin Kachingwe
19 July 2008
CHRIS Aka is a name that no longer needs introduction to music fans and enthusiasts on the local front. The dread-locked artiste has indeed earned himself a place on the wall chart of Zambian music.
Born Chris Akasesha Linenga in 1970, he did his education at Lukanga primary school in Kabwe and later at Kalonga secondary school before moving to Chifubu secondary school in Ndola.
He completed secondary school education back in Kabwe at Highridge secondary school.
The artiste has so far produced three albums and shared the stage with almost all the big names on the local front as well as some from the African continent like Eric Wainana of Kenya, Didier Awandi of Senegal, Yvonnie Chaka Chaka of South Africa,
Zimbabwean maestro Oliver Mtukudzi as well as Awilo Longomba and Diamond Musica from the Rhumba-rich Democratic Republic of Congo.
His first album, Pay Slow, earned him a nomination at the country's most prestigious awards, the National Arts Council-organised Ngoma Awards.
These awards recognise excellence in all art disciplines at the end of each year.
Otherwise, Chris Aka is a man who started professional music in 1994 when he played for Sentries, an outfit that was being sponsored by the Zambia Army in Kabwe.
This band rocked Kabwe playing at a number of functions including weddings, annual balls for the Zambia Army and had the pleasure of sharing the stage with the legendary PK Chishala, one of the most recognisable names in Zambian music.
One of the Sentries bandsmen, Lloyd Simfukwe, is now based in Botswana as a gospel musician.
After enjoying success with Sentries, Chris Aka, who draws inspiration from the likes of Senegalese musician Youssou Ndour and the Zambian legend Keith Mlevu, decided to go solo in 1996.
As a solo artiste, he did a lot of carbaret in most of the notable places in Kabwe and the Copperbelt including Elephants Head Hotel, Mulungushi Motel, Kafubu Inn, Avalanche and Sun City.
Thereafter, he decided to move to the capital city Lusaka where he graced venues like Fairview Hotel, Café de Afrique and at the Zambia Music Day which was being sponsored by the French Embassy in Lusaka.
Chris Aka performed in almost all the major towns of the country before finally deciding to record an album.
However, before recording, the artiste who has also worked with Zion Dub Squad, Airpower Band, Ngoma Zasu and Wailing Roots, won second prize at the Singing for Africa competition that was sponsored by the Africa Friendship Fund.
By this time, which was around 1999, he had become a major fixture at functions like Youth day celebrations and the Zambia International Trade Fair.
It was not until 2003 that he entered the studio to record an album, which was aptly titled Pay Slow.
This debut album took Chris Aka all the way to the Ngoma Awards where only the top three finalists are recorded as nominees. He was one of the three!
Although he lost out on the main prize, there was no doubting in the quality of his recordings. A good number of songs from that album have since become hits.
These include the title-track New Culture, Sweet Talk, Mwana Wamasiye and Misusu Kulampa.
Others have asked why he took that long to record his debut album. To this, Chris Aka says he wanted to gain enough experience so that by the time he was recording, he would have known exactly what the fans wanted.
However, before that, he had featured and co-produced a hit track that was titled Findombolo with Emmie Routes, another well-known artiste.
Chris Aka was also one of the artistes selected to contribute a song on a compilation called Spirit of Zambia, which was intended to coincide with Zambia's 40 th independence anniversary celebrations.
He contributed the track Tikondane, which in its literal translation means "Let Us Love One Another".
Other artistes on the compilation included Pontiano Kaiche, Spuki Mulemwa, Sista D, Bantu Roots and Matthew Tembo.
One thing is true about Chris Aka, and that is that his songs are always issue-based. With everyone talking about gender-equality, he has done a song, Mwachilamo, with another leading gospel musician James "Chamanyazi" Ngoma on gender.
He has also done songs on the plight of the teacher whom he regards as important and indispensable in the development of any society.
Following these projects, he entered the studio to record his second album, Kuzionesa (Showing Off), whose title-track has been described as one of the best reggae songs on the local front.
This album has given him more mileage to penetrate the much-sought international market. And true to form, in August 2007, he recorded a song for the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) with one of Zimbabwe's leading musicians, Q-Montana. This song has enjoyed considerable airplay both in Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Still on the international front, he has done a compilation album with Q-Montana and Mau Mwale, younger sister of Germany-based Zambian songbird, Anna Mwale, which is titled, Amoma. The album has been released in Zimbabwe.
Further, Chris Aka has also featured on another compilation album in Zimbabwe, Another Brick featuring that country's top gospel musicians.
Currently, Chris Aka is doing final touches to his third album, which he has titled Africa. This album addresses a number of issues such as the need for peace on the African continent, HIV/AIDS and gender violence, disease, culture and other day-to-day issues affecting society.
Apart from the reggae touch, he also has some serious traditional music flare on this album.
Chris Aka, who currently runs a 12-member band, is passionate about Africa and says he wants to see a continent free from disease, war and one which is on its way to prosperity.
It is against this backdrop that he has dedicated this album to Africa.
Other than music, Chris Aka, who once performed at the World Social Forum in Kenya and is an ambassador for the Zambia Malaria Foundation, takes time to talk about social issues during his performances.
A regular feature at shows like the Bob Marley Memorial Show - the biggest reggae concert in the country held annually to remember the life of the late Jamaican reggae icon - Chris Aka is one of the few male artistes that used to grace the Zambia Association of Musicians-organised Women in Music Festival with the others being the likes of Chamanyazi and Davies Ngoma, otherwise known as Nasty D.
This festival was the country's biggest collection of women musicians and attracted the 'who's who' of women musicians in the country.
Simply put, Chris Aka is a specialist in Afro-fusion and a class act raring to go further with his music career!
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