Published by the government of Zimbabwe
Richmore Tera
14 January 2009
Harare — THE year 2008 saw many apostolic choral music groups taking centre stage with their vibes that dominated the mainstream music circuit like never before.
Likewise, it seems the New Year will see the growth of such musicians striving hard to develop the genre and make it more competitive in order to move with evolving music trends.
Thirty year-old gifted lyricist and composer, Simon Mandirahwe of the Voices of Praise Gospel Team is one musician who is taking the genre to another level.
Simon -- who first hogged the limelight with his hit song Uchandosaina Wega, carried on his sophomore album of the same title -- is not stopping; he has just released his third album, Tapinda MuNazareth.
Having first cut his musical teeth in the Anglican Church as the leader of the leading vocalist of the Anglican Mbare Gospel Singers with Edwin Muzarurwi, on this eight-track album Simon proves his maturity and vocal expertise.
Recorded at Metro Studios, the album kicks off with the title track, Hande MunaZareth that calls upon people to repent. It is a similar message that is also contained in Dai Taenda, where he underscores the significance to discard earthly things.
Those who forget that people die and stand for their sins on judgement as individuals rather than as a group, family, or friends are reminded that the 'journey' is travelled separately while Job is derived from the Biblical story of Job who went through a lot of travails in life but went to heaven.
In Mwari Vanondishamisa, God's mighty power is praised while Dai Baba Mauya appeals to God to send Jesus Christ for the second coming and make the world a better place. Ndazoiwana Nzira and Conclusion make up the rest of the play-list.
Born in Tsanzaguru in Rusape on March 24 1979, Simon first recorded his debut album in 1999 with his church choir before forming his own outfit in 2002, with which he recorded his first solo project Jesus Touch My Heart.
But it was the eight-track project Uchandosaina Wega in 2007 that thrust him onto the limelight. Since then, Simon has never looked back and this year he has returned with Tapinda MuNazareth that is poised to cause a stir on the local music scene.
His other band members include: Andrew Petai, Shamiso Mandirahwe, Nicholas Masara, twins Tafadzwa and Munyaradzi Sondo and Spiwe Rufu.
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