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| Entertainment |
| ‘Our music getting eroded’ Lawrence Mbenjere |
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by
Herbert Chandilanga, 04 July 2006
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04:43:46
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Not so long ago, a man from Chiwosha area, Ndakwa Village in T/A Simphasi, Mchinji, came from the blue and stunned the music fraternity with his music.
He came with a no-hands-barred approach, taking all the lyrical command to himself.
His Chiphaso and Chimwendo hits suddenly became darlings to many ears. His unique touch, made different from others by his emphasis on typical Central Region accent, forced its way into many homes and entertainment places. That was the birth of a force to reckon––Lawrence Mbenjere.
But the man cannot , up to this day, define his music.
“I know it’s a fusion of beats of traditional dances, but I still don’t have a good name for it,” says Mbenjere, who is married to Pauline and has two sons––Sheperd and Wanangwa.
“I’ve come to make fighting for the poor one of the central themes in my music. I want to make sure that poor and struggling Malawians, like the farmers who are forced by circumstances to sell their farm produce at very low prices, get heard.
“I also want to fight for the needy and helpless, who are being swindled by NGOs and other bogus institutions. Again, there is no way I can forget to tell my countrymen to watch against HIV and Aids. The situation calls for prudence in the way we live. Aids is all around us and we need to be cautious,” he says.
He assesses that the musician in Malawi has a lot to be done in disseminating messages that will save the nation.
“But the challenge is that the music industry leaves a lot to be desired. We have a few selling points and the market is congested. We therefore find it difficult to get the few selling points to distribute our music,” mourns the 27–year–old.
He notes that Malawian music is endangered.
“There’s too much importation of other genres. The result is that we get our own beats so diluted and displaced. On the local scene, we copy too much from others too. Every musician must strive to do their own thing, come up with their own styles they should identified with,” he says.
Until two weeks ago, he had never staged a show in Blantyre and when he did, many eyes marvelled at him in disbelief.
“I know people who see me on stage for the first time wonder why, unlike other musicians, I’m always clad in a tie. I was like since secondary school days. I’ve always wanted to look smart and I feel better that way. I wear no jeans, you can imagine that.”
“I just feel a pair of jeans won’t make me look smart. I think I dress the right way for one who likes to look smart and well mannered,” says Mbenjere, a Christian who congregates with the Assemblies of God.
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