Fred Zindi

Follow Fred Zindi on:

In the groove: Sungura music: The past, present and future

Many Zimbabwean musicians fuse their music with versions of rumba, western pop music, jazz, reggae, dancehall

By Fred Zindi Sep. 4, 2022

In the groove: Sungura music: The past, present and future

In the groove: Obituary: Aswad's Angus Gaye aka 'Drummie Zeb'dead

The shows in Rufaro Stadium, Harare and Barbourfields Stadium, Bulawayo were sold out, the latter being marred by a failed P.A. system.

By Fred Zindi Sep. 11, 2022

In the groove: Obituary: Aswad's Angus Gaye aka 'Drummie Zeb'dead

In the groove: Who are Zimbabwe's top musicians?

Many of those who ask me this question assume that I listen to all music released in Zimbabwe. The truth is I don’t.

By Fred Zindi Sep. 18, 2022

In the groove: Who are Zimbabwe's top musicians?

Whose responsibility is preservation of cultural heritage?

Yours Truly was recently privileged to come across a research document that exclusively dwelt on administration of archeological heritage sites in Hwange.

By Fred Zindi Sep. 22, 2022

Whose responsibility is preservation of cultural heritage?

In the groove: Projections of African music business

Zimura protects the performing rights of authors and collects royalties on their behalf.

By Fred Zindi Sep. 25, 2022

In the groove: Projections of African music business

In the groove: Did hicc concert mark end of sungura?

Sungura music (sometimes referred to as Museve) at some point used to be Zimbabwe’s most popular music genre especially in the 1980’s.

By Fred Zindi Oct. 2, 2022

In the groove: Did hicc concert mark end of sungura?

In the groove: How to avoid poor attendances at concerts

Their only challenge would be to put trustworthy people at the entrance points who will record every amount handed in by each individual.

By Fred Zindi Oct. 9, 2022

In the groove: How to avoid poor attendances at concerts

In the groove: Does music help you through tough times?

To this day, I read books on serious subjects with the radio on.

By Fred Zindi Oct. 16, 2022

In the groove: Does music help you through tough times?

In the groove: Is Covid-19 still affecting the music industry?

The crisis has highlighted and accelerated many challenges which the sector had already been facing.

By Fred Zindi Oct. 23, 2022

In the groove: Is Covid-19 still affecting the music industry?

In the groove: Ganja use allowed at Rebel Salute Festival

I told him that I would work out my diary and let him know as soon as I know what I am doing next year.

By Fred Zindi Oct. 30, 2022

In the groove: Ganja use allowed at Rebel Salute Festival

Louis Mhlanga caught live in Harare

This time, he was backed by Kelly Rusike on bass, Kuda on drums and members of Jazz Invitation who are an amazing band full of very talented individuals.

By Fred Zindi Nov. 6, 2022

In the groove: Another one of Bob Marley’s Wailers dead!

If you will recall, Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer were the three main and original artistes in the Wailers Band.

By Fred Zindi Nov. 13, 2022

In the groove: Another one of Bob Marley’s Wailers dead!

In the groove: How Zimbabwean artistes are celebrating Christmas 2022

One wonders if this year’s Christmas is going to be a merry one or a miserable one. It looks like the live music industry is in trouble.

By Fred Zindi Nov. 20, 2022

In the groove: How Zimbabwean artistes are celebrating Christmas 2022

In the groove: Hallelujah Chicken Run Band: The full story

It wasn’t until Samy Ben Redjeb of Analog Africa (Shungu Label) went to Mhangura to find out how all this happened: This is his story:

By Fred Zindi Nov. 27, 2022

In the groove: Hallelujah Chicken Run Band: The full story

Young Karl shapes the future of music and dance

I have often been accused of not featuring young up-coming artistes in my articles.

By Fred Zindi Dec. 4, 2022

Young Karl shapes the future of music and dance

In the groove: Tymon Mabaleka: One of Zim’s most revered music producers

A lot of musicians who were in Harare who saw footballer Tymon Mabaleka aka ‘The White Horse’, behind the recording and mixing desk when Gallo Records re-located from Bulawayo to Harare in 1982

By Fred Zindi Dec. 11, 2022

In the groove: Tymon Mabaleka: One of Zim’s most revered music producers

Burna Boy, Whizkid and Davido putting afro beats on the world map

I deliberately included Western artistes as I was conscious of the fact that African music was completely ignored by the West.

By Fred Zindi Dec. 18, 2022

Burna Boy, Whizkid and Davido putting afro beats on the world map

In the groove: How music can be torture

However, it is not all the time that music is used in a positive way. It can also be used in a negative fashion in some cases.

By Fred Zindi Dec. 25, 2022

In the Groove: Musicians say goodbye to the year 2022

Many musicians found it tough going in the year 2022 to the extent that some had to quit the industry altogether.

By Fred Zindi Jan. 8, 2023

In the Groove: Musicians say goodbye to the year 2022

In the Groove: Is Holy Ten a coward?

Holy Ten, born Mukudzei Chitsama, cites the sensationalisation of the song by commentators, journalists and activists which has fuelled political undertones within some sections.

By Fred Zindi Jan. 15, 2023

Did we steal Enoch Sontonga’s song?

Today, in Zimbabwe the law of copyright is governed by the Copyright and Neighbouring Rights Act.

By Fred Zindi Jan. 22, 2023

In the groove:Vinyl records or cd’s: What sounds better?

People often ask: “What sounds better vinyl or CD?”

By Fred Zindi Feb. 5, 2023

In the groove:Vinyl records or cd’s: What sounds better?

In the groove: Mokoomba: Live in concert at Alliance Francáis

Mokoomba held their first show in Zimbabwe this year on February 4.

By Fred Zindi Feb. 12, 2023

In the groove: Mokoomba: Live in concert at Alliance Francáis

Sponsorship needed in the music industry

Despite the fact that there are a lot of youngsters with lots of musical talent in the country, a lot of that talent is lost as most of them give up due to lack of financial support.

By Fred Zindi Feb. 19, 2023

Sponsorship needed in the music industry

In the groove: Has violence marred Zimdancehall?

In trying to decide which gig to attend, I was torn between the two until after much debate with my friend who persuaded me to attend Winky D’s concert at the HICC.

By Fred Zindi Feb. 26, 2023

In the groove: Has violence marred Zimdancehall?

In the groove: The changing face of Nama

These guys are still big in their own, right but the organisation of this award ceremony has now changed face.

By Fred Zindi Mar. 5, 2023

In the groove: The changing face of Nama

In the groove: Fela Kuti: The pioneer of afro-beats

In the same way, Fela Aníkúlápó Kuti the Nigerian musician and activist (born on October15, 1938 and died August 2, 1997) is credited with being the pioneer of afro-beats.

By Fred Zindi Mar. 12, 2023

In the groove: Fela Kuti: The pioneer of afro-beats

In the groove: Zimbabwean women in music

This March is Women’s History month. This is also the month in which we celebrate women musicians in Zimbabwe.

By Fred Zindi Mar. 19, 2023

In the groove: Zimbabwean women in music

In the groove: What happened to the government’s P.A. system?

To one side of the stadium a construction crew completed work on a massive stage. This was for Bob Marley and the Wailers. Now, ‘massive’, of course, is a relative word.

By Fred Zindi Mar. 26, 2023

In the groove: What happened to the government’s P.A. system?

In the groove: How the Nigerian Afro-beats has increasingly become popular world-wide

Nigerian artistes are regularly sought out by major international labels, while the industry has also seen the emergence of a number of independent labels.

By Fred Zindi Apr. 2, 2023