THE WORLD ACCORDING TO GAPPAH

Monday, 18 April 2011

Totutuma! Happy Independence Day Zimbabwe!

Some people think Zimbabwe and then immediately Mugabe. I think Zim and Oliver Mtukudzi, the man with the weeping guitar and crackly voice, springs immediately to mind. He is our undeclared laureate, the man who brought untold pleasure to millions during Zimbabwe’s difficult decade, a humble ambassador who has given far more than he has taken. Today is Zimbabwe’s 31st independence day and I share with you Oliver’s seminal Totutuma at the link below. The translation of this song on the album Tsivo is "We celebrate". A more poetic translation would be "We overflow with pride and joyousness", which I certainly do when I listen to Oliver. Happy independence day, Zimbabwe!

Totutuma!

Photo of Oliver from the blog PhotoDelusions - http://photodelusions.wordpress.com.

Posted by Petina Gappah at 00:19
Email ThisBlogThis!Share to TwitterShare to Facebook
Labels: Zimbabweana

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

andinzwi has to be my personal favourite. Would link it but it isn't on youtube :(

18 April 2011 05:50
Anonymous said...

Andinzwi has to be my personal favourite. I would link it but it isn't on youtube...

18 April 2011 05:51

Post a Comment

Newer Post Older Post Home
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)

About Me

Petina Gappah
Harare, Zimbabwe
I currently live in Harare, from where I write, travel and chair the Board of the Harare City Library. My story collection "An Elegy for Easterly" was published in 2009 by Faber and Faber and awarded the Guardian First Book Award. It was also shortlisted for the Orwell Prize, the LA Times First Book Award and Zimbabwe's NAMA award. It has been published in more than a dozen languages. I am currently writing my first novel.
View my complete profile

Followers

Subjects

  • A Zimbabwean Childhood (16)
  • Always on my mind (60)
  • An Elegy for Easterly (11)
  • Around the world with Easterly (23)
  • Book Club (2)
  • Events (6)
  • Ex Africa Semper (3)
  • Faber Academy (2)
  • Fashion and frivolity (8)
  • Favourite links (1)
  • Follies and Nonsense (3)
  • From the Department of WOW (4)
  • From the Department of WTF (58)
  • Guests (8)
  • Harare City Library (2)
  • How to Run a Banana Republic (1)
  • News and milestones (25)
  • Offers (1)
  • Only in Harare (2)
  • People who write (36)
  • Petina Appreciates (11)
  • Press and reviews (4)
  • Published work (15)
  • Random randomness (1)
  • Recent Reading (26)
  • Resolutions (1)
  • Rosemary for Remembrance (1)
  • Rotina Mavhunga (4)
  • Switzerland (3)
  • The Book of Memory (4)
  • The Death Penalty (2)
  • The Magic of 2009 (3)
  • The week that was (3)
  • The Winter of the Patriarch (12)
  • Travel and more (8)
  • TWAG Quote of the Week (8)
  • Zimbabwean writers on Zimbabwean books (3)
  • Zimbabweana (61)
  • Zimphotos (5)

Blog Archive

WRITERS I LIKE

  • Ben Wilson
  • Binyavanga Wainaina
  • Brian Chikwava
  • Chris Abani
  • Chris Cleave
  • Christopher Mlalazi
  • Daniyal Mueenuddin
  • Etgar Keret
  • Ignatius Mabasa
  • Julian Gough
  • Kamila Shamsie
  • Lola Shoneyin
  • Nadeem Aslam
  • Nam Le
  • Owen Sheers
  • Peter Fogtdal
  • Raj Patel
  • Reif Larsen
  • Sefi Atta
  • Shailja Patel
  • Tash Aw
  • Xiaolu Guo
  • Yiyun Li

stuff and places and i like

  • Comment is free
  • David Perdue's Charles Dickens Page
  • Gawker
  • International PEN
  • Law and Conversation
  • Per Contra
  • Pilgrimages
  • Prospect Blog
  • Savage Love
  • Television without Pity
  • The Onion
  • Waterstones Book Club
  • Wordsetc
  • Zimbo jam

Statcounter

©Petina Gappah. Awesome Inc. template. Powered by Blogger.