January Feature: Tariro NeGitare

Tariro "Wildfire" Chaniwa now affectionately known as Tariro NeGitare first came to Sistaz Open Mic platform on the occasion of its first birthday where, encouraged by a friend, she played for the first time publicly, a beautiful rendition of the famous Bob Marley classic ‘Redemption Song’, which brought her to the attention of the music world in Harare, and prompted afrojazz star Dudu Manhenga to introduce her to afropop bandleader Edith Katiji who happened to be looking for a guitarist at the time.  They played together on that same day, and by the following weekend Tari was performing her first show with Edith weUtonga in the city - and the rest is history.   Tari and Edith WeUtonga both participated at Sistaz Open Mic regularly and steadily for the first two years and have continued to support the platform since, joining in whenever available.

 

Tariro NeGitare: Photo Courtesy of Macpherson Photographers

She said “Sistaz Open Mic has had a strong impact on my music journey, and I value it as a performance platform.  People don’t realize that to improve as an artist, you just need to be able to perform in public, experiment with new music, meet and interact with other artists, professionals that you can learn from.  You don’t get that opportunity everyday.”  

 

She grew quickly while working with Edith weUtonga who was an all-round mentor, teaching her to sing (while playing), stage performance and band administration, and they performed regularly at the Book Café and other venues around the city. 

At Sistaz Open Mic: We are proud to have worked with these four phenomenal voices

She had been instrumental in the setup of the ‘Acoustic Night’ platform at the Zimbabwe-German Society, where she met many different musicians and eventually formed her own backing band from these interactions.  Her backing vocalists Vera and Rufaro also emerged from the Sistaz Open Mic platform. 

 

Welcoming the opportunity to play her own music compositions which she calls ‘afro-soul’, Tari stepped up to a solo career in 2012, and released her debut album ‘Tariro neGitare’ in April 2013.  The track ‘Uripi’ is doing well on the airwaves, and she will be releasing a single and video, which also features popular artist Jah Prayzah, on 31 January at Book Cafe.

 

Tari’s star has been rising swiftly, 2013 having been an exciting year with her first tour to Germany with German group Jamaram in March-April 2013, a May collaboration with The Noisettes (UK) at HIFA, sharing the stage in Harare with SA’s Zahara + Zimbabwe superstar Oliver Mtukudzi, and with acclaimed afrojazz singer Simpiwe Dhana in South Africa in December 2013. 

ENDS

PAMBERI TRUST

FLAME PROJECT