Remembering lyrical genius Paul Matavire

By Marshall Shonhai

Arguably, one of the greatest lyricists Zimbabwe has every produced, Paul Matavire was a Zimbabwean singer and songwriter who was known for his deep Shona and Ndebele lyrics which he fused well with humor, drama and great vocals to easily address some of the most sensitive and contemporary societal issues.

Doctor Love as he was affectionately known because of his favorite subject in most of his songs, love, was very naughty, witty and at times very cheeky Matavire’s style remains unmatched to this very day.

He was born on the 3rd of August 1961 in the Maranda area in the Mwenezi district of Masvingo province. Matavire died at the age of 44 in 2005 and could have celebrated his 51st birthday just yesterday. May his soul continue to Rest in Peace

At a very young age, Matavire suffered from glaucoma which left him blind. At the age of 21 he joined The Jairos Jiri Band (a band made up of disabled members) where he was selected to lead the group also known as JJB.

He eventually broke away from JJB to form his own band which he called Hit Machine in the early 1990s. Matavire rose to become a household name in the mid 1980s through to the turn of the millennium in 2000 a time at which he produced hit after hit.

Paul Matavire will forever be remembered as an influencer of modern culture through some of the phrases he came up with in his music which became and remained part of modern day language. He was also a controversial character who was once arrested and spent one-year in prison on rape charges in 1991.

On his release he came back with an album he called Back from College where he did a song where he made fun at his arresting officer calling his arrest a joke of the year which was the title of the song sometimes referred to as KwaChiundura.

Some of his most popular was very controversial and attracted sharp criticism from women’s rights groups. The three songs that did not go down well with many were Dhiyabhorosi Nyoka, Taurai Zvenyu and Tanga Wandida.

His music has been accused in some spaces of “glorifying patriarchy while portraying women as subservient to the masculine gender”.

In Dhiyabhorosi Nyoka (Diabolical snake), Matavire stands accused of using “biblical inter-textual allusions, humour, and sarcasm to demonstrate that Eve’s original sin was the genesis of the challenges besetting contemporary society (and especially men).” He is also accused of “deploying a gendered perspective and demeaning language” in some of his songs.

Besides all these controversies, his music still occupies a prominent place in Zimbabwe’s music history and remains very popular. Some of his biggest hits Chando Chimouraya, Christmas Yasweda, Handirambe, Dhindindi Fulltime, Joke of the year (kwachiundura), Akanaka Akarara, Chipuka Ndipe Mwenje, Ndagumbuka, Basa Rinopera (Mevis), Tanga Wandida, Ma U, Umtombo wegazi amongst many others have earned a permanent place as Zimbabwean classics.

Paul Matavire had a very rich discography and some of the albums he left us include;

1986 JJB Style

1989 Matavire Mbune

1990 Doctor Love Vol 2

1991 Back from College

1992 Dhindindi Fulltime (Reissue of Doctor Love Volume 2, LP)

1993 Akanaka Akarara

1995 Gakanje (with the Hit Machine, LP)

1995 Mapanga Muhomwe (with the Hit Machine, LP)

1996Asipo Haapo (with the Hit Machine, CASS)

1998 Fadza Customer (with the Hit Machine, CASS)

1999 Govanai (CASS)