Harare — HE enters The Arena posthumously. And he does so because he was a gifted artiste whose immense talent was not only a blessing for Zimbabwe, but also left a lasting legacy.

The void he left is difficult to fill despite the fact that other talented artistes have followed in his footsteps.

The Arena is unabashed to pay these accolades to him. And he is none other than Leonard Dembo, the undisputed sungura legend who passed on in 1996.

Dembo's presence in The Arena is a phenomenal and inspiring experience. For, despite having been media shy, we hope that as we reminisce on his illustrious career, listening to that powerful rhythm guitar and those vocals full of imaginative symbols and double talk, the Zimbabwean story which started when he released hits like Venencia or Dudzai will continue to be told. For music is a powerful medium.

We need the thread to continue for Zimbabwe to sing and dance to the rhythms thrummed by its sons and daughters.

It has been as if people had forgotten that music is what we need when we feel that hollowness, bitterness, anger and a jovial mood, even.

As Dembo does so, The Arena is aware of the fact that there are many like him, who have produced classics and gems that make Zimbabwe so rich culturally.

These musical greats include Thomas Mapfumo, Marshall Munhumumwe, James Chimombe, Susan Mapfumo, Paul Matavire, Susan Chenjerai, Safirio Madzikatire, Biggie Tembo, Simon Chimbetu, Solomon Sikhuza, Ketai Muchawaya and Kasongo Band, System Tazvida, Oliver Mtukudzi, Alick Macheso, Nicholas Zakaria, Jonah Moyo, Busi Ncube, Zexie Manatsa, Andy Brown, Lovemore Majaivana and many more.

And they did so in different languages, their sounds pointing to something -- unity and harmony, for music has a unifying element.

Even a mother's lullaby silences a crying baby.

Dembo's lyrics, fused with the powerful instrumentation of his era, produced rich melodies that have outlived him and his Barura Express band.

The power in Dembo's music would have been felt in today's world of satellite TV as the world would have seen its impact when one of his greatest hits "Chitekete" was used as the theme song at the Miss World contest in Namibia in 1994.

This says something about Hildegarde. She is old school, so please do not gripe if the men and women honoured by The Arena are nothing but old school. When I see the excitement around Macheso, Sulumani and Tongai Moyo, it actually tells me how times have changed.

For there was a time when it was not just on to listen to black Zimbabwean music. Hildegarde remembers so well that after leaving the University of Zimbabwe, which was one of the greatest entertainment hubs in Harare, the first Zimbabwean band to cross Second Street Extension and play at UZ was Kasongo Band under Ketai Muchawaya.

The UZ was the national yardstick in the entertainment arena. It was the pulse through which entertainment joints were judged. This was despite that all people still lived in ghettos.

However, dear reader, when we heard that Kasongo Band had played at UZ; we were shocked and incensed, not because Kasongo had done it, and not because at that time it was one of the best bands around, but we did not want to see "standards" eroded by bands we felt had no business at UZ. We argued that they should remain in places like Mushandirapamwe Hotel, and other remote centres, and leave UZ to those who could imitate Western rock bands.

However, years later, as what was called music "yechibharanzi" was getting more acceptable, a colleague told us sceptics: "There is no going back. Kasongo has sounded the death knell for hard rock and disco music. Just give it a few more years, and you'll be shocked at the rate people will realise how lost they were, and start embracing their own music, including appreciating their artistes."

What prophetic words, whoever came up with the 75 percent local content seemed as though they were eavesdropping on this conversation. As The Arena toasts Dembo, it is becoming more evident that Macheso, Tongai Moyo and Sulumani Chimbetu are walking in the footsteps of their forebears, and doing it so well. They have captured even the most snobbish tastes.

But the real issue is that after Kasongo, the acceptance and appreciation opened opportunities for other artistes, until the likes of Dembo outshone, and were able to have the most beautiful girls in the world cat-walking to the accompaniment of Chitekete, whose meaning also implied that the Miss World title was just as elusive as "ruva rechitekete".

The mastery in the lyrics "pauri pane dandemutande, pane feso rinobaya, ndokutora seiko" (My love, there are spiders where you are and there are also thorns, and since I don't have shoes, how will I reach out to you?"), reinforced the greats lengths to which girls go, to earn that title.

His was a creative ability that pushes any analyst to extraneous limits to try and understand what kind of artiste he was, his message, motive in the message and what propelled his capabilities. There is also a desire to know what was behind that rare talent, so rare that no one was able to take over like what happened in the Chimbetu family.

Dembo's music was also a manifestation of a man who understood the beautiful and the ugly of human nature. But, above all, he is probably one of the few musicians who appreciated the positive elements in womanhood, be they sisters, mothers or girlfriends.

His lyrics are a symbol of appreciating women and the inner beauty in them. They are also symbols of life among ordinary people. His music says it all -- he was not a man who manipulated people, or sang for the sake of it. There are so many songs dedicated to women. And some people believe that since the sungura beat was greatly influenced by the East African Kanindo genre where most songs sing about women, Dembo, could have copied this positive trend.

His music also presents people as symbols of hard work; organised and appreciates the role of parenthood. He also advocates for people's basic rights. But, aside from his artistic talent, why The Arena thought that Leonard Dembo should be a player is because he was an artiste who did not shortchange his fans. The average time in most of his songs is seven minutes, because most songs are more than that. Chitekete is 14:01 minutes; Dudzai, 10:05; Zii Zii, 11:01; and Zvaunoda handizvigoni is a whopping 16:04 minutes, when most artistes prize money more than their artistic talent, this is entertainment largesse and it is worth recognising.

He has also again been one of the few artistes who was able to fuse the traditional beat on modern instruments, and "Gire" is one of the songs where the mbakumba, jerusarema and jit beats are fused and so well arranged.

Obviously the master of this art is Mapfumo especially in the hit Murambadoro, which is one of the best arranged songs that took all the traditional instruments and dance forms, and arranged them so well on Western instruments.

When we have so many men and women who have done such a good job for Zimbabwe, why is it that as a nation we fail to recognise their artistic abilities beyond the trinkets that we accord them once in a while? Why are some of them dying paupers?

At least Dembo was an organised son, husband and father. His family has a roof over their heads. We also know that Mtukudzi is a man of taste, who even has a classic homestead in his rural home. The same with Mapfumo. He has been shrewd in his investments. Probably these are the few who understood how fluid the music industry was. The rest are struggling big time.

It is time that these men and women of song and dance are rewarded handsomely for the immense work they do. Technological advancements continue to erode earnings from their hard work. Some also are used by managers and promoters, making money for others. The men and women we read about or see on television are actually struggling to make ends meet.

If Michael Jackson's estate could earn so much posthumously, why should a man whose music put Zimbabwe on the world map not continue to generate revenue for his family and the nation? Why are people in the entertainment business sitting on such pots of gold, while are they busy selling Western artistes?

Having said that The Arena will assertively say that Leonard Dembo was a musician who was good from the very beginning, and as he got older and wiser, his music, like wine, got even better.