The Zawose Queens – Maisha (Real World Records, 2024)
Gifted artists Pendo and Leah Zawose, from Bagamoyo, Tanzania, have released their remarkable debut album, Maisha, under the name The Zawose Queens. This release marks the first album by female members of Tanzania’s renowned Zawose musical family.
The Zawose Queens’ music expertly combines traditional instruments such as the chizeze fiddle, ilimba thumb piano, and ngoma drums with modern electronic elements. Their songs, performed in the Kigogo language, celebrate the passion for music, the wonders of life, and pride in their East African heritage.
The debut album presents the stirring polyrhythms and magnificent polyphonic singing of the Gogo people from the Dodoma region. Notably, Dr. Hukwe Zawose, Pendo’s father and Leah’s grandfather, was a prominent figure in this musical tradition.
“This is our heritage, performed our way,” say Leah and Pendo Zawose.
The Zawose Queens began their songwriting career with workshops led by UK-based producers Oli Barton-Wood and Tom Excell. The resulting songs range from traditional sounds to those enhanced with electronic beats and found sounds. “Maisha,” the first single from the album, features transfixing ilimba thumb piano and lyrics about striving for a better life and incorporates both traditional and modern musical elements.
Maisha is released on Peter Gabriel’s Real World Records, a label that previously featured recordings by Hukwe Zawose in the 1990s. The Zawose Queens will continue their family’s legacy by performing at the influential WOMAD festival in Wiltshire this July.
Buy Maisha.
Author: Angel Romero
Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.