zuwa

Z u w a An introduction to ethno-rock........The expression that is Zuwa embodies a diverse creativity that relates to opposite ends of the same world. Zuwa carries dual heritage, and is as much an expression of one of these, as she is of the other. She refuses to side with either, and embraces both, as she knows she cannot divide herself from who she is. Where Harare, Zimbabwe meets South London, where black meets white, we find Zuwa. Where indie rock and folk meet African riffs and drum rhythyms, where rocking guitar strings meet soulful melodies, rhythmn and poetry; we find ethno-rock the two words that tie together the music expressed by Zuwa. Coloured, brownin, even cafe au lait. It doesn't matter, it is what it is.Zuwa has been inspired by the music of Bob Marley, Lauryn Hill, Carol King, Billie Holiday, The Beatles, The Stones, and Lenny Kravitz to name a few. Her parents spun the 60's classics mostly, also including Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, The Jacksons and The Supremes. Alicia Keys, Jill Scott, Norah Jones, Common, and John Legend have more recently inspired her.Zuwa is a singer-songwriter, poet and actress. She is eloquent in all of these, and what joins it together, is Zuwa's passion and respect for communication, and words, and often her lyrics reflect this - Believing that the power of life and death is in the tongue, she uses words to inspire and challenge, evoke thought, stimulate, heal and edify.Her first steps into music involved a short term as a member of the African Hip hop group, A Peace of Ebony. They won the Radio France International Award for Best African Group in the Les Descouvertes competition. Their Award winning song titled Vadzimu features on an album distributed by the Putumayo World Music label. Before that, and after, Zuwa has worked as an actress, including working on projects for the BBC and ITV, TPI Italy and various productions for African broadcast. She has a vast amount of theatrical experience, and her biggest audience would be the millions that watched her take part in a Miss World competition, where she was a contestant.Although her artistic experience is vast, her development as a singer-songwriter has been a very personal process, making her songs intriguing and rich. Zuwa is a natural, cooked like raw bush tea, this is no instant tea bag type of thing! Zuwa, meaning 'Sunshine', is here to shed some light and warmth, with her musical style and unique blend of lyrical content - Whoever you are, hopefully you'll find something you can relate to in her music, just don't force yourself to define it....