MAFRIQ has been hibernating for at least close to a year-and-half, staying away from the limelight.
Simbarashe Manhango Own Correspondent
However, the Afro-fusion duo made up of Lovedale “Discord” Makalanga and Pauline Gundidza has released a video for their hit single Kende Kende.
The video comes barely a month following the release of the single in September.
Kende Kende is a traditional song, perhaps a rendition of one of the most popular rhythms (Emma) usually sung at funerals, but that has been amazingly turned into a fitting love song.
The song speaks of complexities of love relationships that exist in society on a daily basis and focus of this single is fixed on how this sublime subject (love) affects almost every individual at one point in time in varying relationships.
Shot in Highfeild, the video is a collaborative effort between Phenom Media fronted by Brighton Tazarura and Tatenda Sibanda of Boom Swad Studios.
The script entails of a girl who is forced into a polygamous relationship merely because of financial constraints and circumstances.
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This is also the subject from which the title of the song stems from “handikendenge”, expressing views of an arrogant woman ignoring her values because she wants to earn a survival.
However, the story line diverts towards the end of the video when the girl, represented by Pauline in the video, reconciles with her boyfriend who now is well up and leading a life previously admired by the stray girl.
Lines that make up the chorus intricately echoed by Pauline tell a lot about feelings of a woman surging in love yet at the same time forgoing hatred relentlessly, choosing not to mind even the rough patches she has gone through.
This is one of the videos to look out for and the first high definition video that Mafriq has done this year and a lead video to projects to come.
NewsDay caught up with Discord who said that through this video, Mafriq was working towards defending their genre and maintaining their status as custodians of traditional music in Zimbabwe.
“We are on a mission to keep alive our music and also aiming to take our music to the world. This is also resembled by our new fusion of sound and inspired rhythm of life that we have decided to call Muringa music,” he said.
Currently, Mafriq is working on another video for the song Zambuko that the group released in 2013. Suffice to this ,Kende Kende is fused with new instruments such as the mbira intricately played by Pauline and is characterised by fast guitar rifts and rapid-fire drumming and, of course, the Jiti feel that perhaps makes it a danceable vibe anywhere across Africa. Striking contemporary art facts about the song and video is also the bass heavily influenced by Congolese rhumba that has, however, been combined with the popping eclectic guitar that gives the song a funky feel. Above all, this adoring arrangement of peculiar sounds and instruments on this song, mixed and mastered by the talented Rockford “Roki” Josphats makes it a wonderful hit. Discord also added the video was already getting commendable reviews via online social media platforms that the group has used to market and publicise the video. “We consulted certain experts when we started shooting this video and the reason why we decided to shoot it in Highfield is because we wanted it to coincide with the message and we have always strived to come up with polished products.” Meanwhile, Mafriq now owns a state-of-the-art studio facilitated through the help of manager and arts practitioner Cosmas Zamangwe. All these positives are part of their concerted efforts as Mafriq to reach the next level and establish themselves as one of the lead Afro-fusion outfits in Zimbabwe.
