HISTORY can be written and erased from the slate of time in a very short period.
OWN CORRESPONDENT
And in that regard 14 years becomes a life time.
But for sungura artiste Magreen Chareka, the wheel of music continues to spin, despite it being 14 years after his name made its first mark on the showbiz scene.
With the likes of Alick Macheso and Madzibaba Nicholas Zakaria, among others, having made it big in the sungura realm, one would not dream of the likes of Chareka to emerge from the ashes like the proverbial phoenix and claim one of the top spots at leading recording firm, Gramma Records.
Chareka’s six-track album Gadziriro is not only dominating in terms of sales at the stable, but is also causing a lot of upsets on National FM where it has outstripped popular releases by some of the country’s leading musicians.
And to prove that the man is out on a serious mission, he has taken to selling his own music and is also holding live shows where he is selling his music. “So far we have sold more than 2 000 copies of our album and we are planning to take all the provinces of the country by storm. We are not stopping at anything, complementing the work that our recording company is making,” Chareka said.
He recalls the long tortuous road he travelled to be where he is today.
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“When we started in Centenary in 1989 alongside my young brother Jealous, it was not all rosy. But because of the love for music, we soldiered on,” narrated Chareka.
“Although the departure of Jealous to pursue greener pastures dealt a big blow to our group, I did not give up.
“This is the spirit that has seen me to where I am today.”
Today, he leads the outfit, Khiya Boys, with whom he recorded his latest album.
“I am determined to maintain the roots of original sungura music in Zimbabwe, without taking anything away from anyone.”
Chareka was born on August 8 1973 in Centenary where he attended school at Centenary Primary School and Holirezari Secondary in Mvurwi.
In 1996, he relocated to Harare and recorded his first album, Chirairo, with ZMC. A track taken off the album, Kutanga Kwerudo, did well on Radio Zimbabwe’s Top 20 music charts.
