Artist:Chiwoniso
Song:Rebel Woman
Album:Rebel Woman
Fans of African music are going to want to check out singer songwriter Chiwoniso Maraire. Sadly, she died young. She certainly had the potential to be a big deal. She was born Mar. 5, 1976 in Olympia, WA. Her father was Zimbanwean mbira master Dumisame Maraire. He moved his family to the US. Chiwoniso went back and forth from the US to Zimbabwe. The main thing he did was he taught Chiwoniso to play the mbire. The mbire is similar to the kalimba. It's like a large xylophone. It's a common instrument in Africa. It has different names depending on location. Chiwoniso attended high school in Seattle and then she studied at the University of Zimbabwe where her father was a teacher. As a teen she formed the Afro fusion hip hop trio A Peace of Ebony which incorporated mbire with rap. They released a 1992 album. Then she joined The Storm led by future husband Andy Brown. She started her own group Chiwoniso & Vibe Culture. She released the solo album Ancient Voices in 1998. Rebel Woman is from the 2008 album Rebel Woman released by the Vermont based label Cumbancha. This turned out to be Chiwoniso's final album as she died from pneumonia on July 24, 2013 at age 37. Her 15 year old daughter committed suicide in 2015. So she didn't get the opportunity to be a major star. Musicians were certainly aware of her. There's a video of her performing with Kris Kristofferson. That's a pretty good endorsement. Once you see Chiwonisa perform, you may like her too. Rebel Woman is available as a budget CD. Here's Chiwonisa performing Rebel Woman.
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