GOSPEL musician, Togarepi Chivaviro’s rise to the top is a typical fairy tale of one struggling for many years before hitting the jackpot, courtesy of the blockbuster song Ebenezer Tirimunyasha 1.
By Jairos Saunyama
The album’s follow-up, Mhepo Inoperekedza, consolidated his tag as a musician emerging from the shadows to bask in glory.
But, going down memory lane, a keen music listener will realise that some of the musician’s old hymns, done several years ago, need to be dusted off the shelves and given another lease of life, and their fate would be different.
Chivaviro has done exactly that as he also believes that his yesteryear tracks require another chance, and fans would definitely embrace them, given his increasing popularity ratings in recent years.
For someone who launched his music career in the late 1990s, he could have long given up as his over 10 albums — one after the other — found very few takers among gospel music lovers outside the fold of the Methodist Church in Zimbabwe.
Ebenezer: Tiri Munyasha 1, however, shot through the ceiling in popularity ratings and turned him into a gospel music superstar overnight.
The award-winning musician’s work rate has not dissipated in the new-found fame and he has continued to produce music. This week, Chivaviro released a live DVD album through which he has resurrected some of his yesteryear tracks, which he hopes will this time around have many takers outside the walls of the Methodist Church. The DVD album was shot in the United Kingdom (UK) in September this year.
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“We released our Hymns Live in Luton DVD album. This captures our last trip to the UK this year and will give our fans a picture of what transpired there. The list of the videos was put forward by our fans and we had to listen to their demands. I believe the DVD album is the best Christmas present for gospel music lovers,” Chivaviro said.
The videos that fans can look forward to are: Tirimo Munzira, Ndicherechedzei Baba, Nganga Huru, Ngatimukudzei Mwari and Hakusi Kurema. The album also consists of videos of popular tracks Ebenezer and Mhepo Inoperekedza that were recorded live.
Following his breakthrough, Chivaviro has been employing many strategies to keep his career afloat. Apart from reviving his old tracks, the lanky musician has worked with a number of artistes, both upcoming and established ones.
Currently he is set to record another celebratory track, Matishamisa, with more than five artistes including South African star Hlengiwe. If all goes according to plan comedian-cum-musician, Freddy Manjalima, affectionately known as Kapfupi, will add his input on the latest track.
Such creativity has become the South African-based musician main stay, who is now engaging other artistes outside the gospel music fraternity. As if that is not enough, he is currently working on a new album to be released next year.
“I was thinking of resting a bit and focus on my ministry but given how thing are now like back home I have changed my mind.
I am going to drop an album each year till I breathe last,” he vowed.
It is such determination that has seen him banging awards and at one point being the best gospel artiste of the year on the continent. But it is his creativity for recording a live DVD album that contains old tracks-possibly in a move meant to take his fans down the memory lane as to where he came from.
