Renowned music producer and lead guitar virtuoso — Mono Mukundu — analyses 10 MOST IMITATED ARTISTS IN ZIMBABWE.
Instead of just being inspired by an artist, some artists go further to try & sound exactly like the artist they admire.This is also caused by listening to one artist only for too long. Carlos Santana once said “Copying one idea from a musician is stealing, but copying from different guitarists is research.” But a lot of artists do not prefer the research approach.
Looking at history, imitating another artist has proved to be a recipe for disaster, on the contrary being different sells more than being a copy of someone. Here is my list of the most imitated artists in Zimbabwe.
1:ALICK MACHESO:
In the history of the Zimbabwean music industry, no artist has ever been mimicked more than this guy. If you listen to some radio stations it is now difficult to tell who the real Macheso is & who isn’t. They copy his singing style, his bass technique, his instrumental arrangements & some copy his bass solos as well as his chirimi (lisp).
One time he released a song mocking the mimickers called “Murondatsimba”,but the problem actually got worse. Long back each Sungura artist had their own sound, the likes of John Chibadura, Pengaudzoke etc.
Warning:
Most if his copy-cats usually feel very offended if you mention it, I am still to discover the reasons why….Next:
2:CHARLES CHARAMBA:
In the Zimbabwe gospel music fraternity this man has been copied so many times, more than any other gospel artist. Some of the artists have realised some amount of success too.it is also sometimes difficult to differentiate who the true Charamba is when some artists sing.
3:JAH PRAYZAH:
The moment Jah Prayzah made a breakthrough there hasn’t been a short of his copies too. Some have excelled at copying him to the extent that you can not differentiate between the O.G & the copy. A number of times I have turned away artists at my studio and told them to go find their own sound & stop copying him they would simply go to other studios & carry on. My fear was that since I also occasionally produce JP, if I recorded them it would seem like I am the one who pushed the agenda.
4:SIMON CHIMBETU:
During the mid ’80s many groups rose that sounded so much like Simon Chimbetu,at times it was difficult to differentiate, artists like Yambiro Six Kings, Maungwe Brothers, etc all started by mimicking Simon Chimbetu.
5:THOMAS MAPFUMO:
Gandanga is one of the most copied artists in the Zimbabwe music industry, from artists like Pio Macheka, Raymond Majongwe, Kurai Makore etc.
6:OLIVER MTUKUDZI:
During the mid 80s a number of groups tried the Oliver Mtukudzi sound. The biggest obstacle of the Tuku sound is that Tuku’s baritone & husky voice is very unique & difficult to copy, so very few managed to copy. A good number of them ended up just copying his acoustic guitar style and music arrangements. But one artist who really came close is an artist from Dzivarasekwa named Peter Tembo & the band Scanners International. Unfortunately he passed away before pursuing his dream further.
But unlike other artists who do not like to be copied, Tuku did not mind. He would actually steer the artists he produced or mentored to sound more like him.
7:FUNGISAI:
It was just Zivanai Masango & me who were the 2men band that played on Fungisai’s first album in 2001,& she became an instant hit. The Mbira guitar style that we played on her music was still new in gospel circles, coupled with her unique vocals it resonated well with the fans. Within a short time a few female artists tried to mimick her style, but fortunately for her, they did not last long.
8:LEONARD DEMBO:
Leonard Dembo is one artist that was copied by quiet a number of artists. Especially in the mid ’80s to mid ’90s the number of bands were so many, but they did not last. The most prominent being Tongai Moyo, who later shifted and later developed his own sound, which I think is the reason why he lasted.
9:PETER MUPARUTSA:
Peter Muparutsa has one of the most distinct voices in the Zimbabwe music industry. Considered as one of the best male voices, obviously he had no shortage of imitators, the most prominent being the likes of Tawanda Pashapa ,Edward Chinyunyu. Unfortunately many of his imitators did not last long.
10:JOHN CHIBADURA:
In the mid 80s to early 90s when Chibadura was on fire a number of artists tried to copy his sound. Even Somandla Ndebele’s first albums had that Tembo brothers sound. I played bass on Somandla’s first recording in February 1992,& we were instructed to replicate that Tembo bros sound. But when Chibadura passed away the trend stopped.— Monolio Studios
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