Sulu chimbetu biography templates

The last time I ran into Suluman Chimbetu was in December 2010 at Avondale Shopping Centre when he gave me his CD, Non Stop.

It was around 10 in the morning. We had met before after his father’s death but not such that we had time to discuss.

The other time I was supposed to meet him was when he had walked out on Alan. His father, Simon's friend known as Fungulani had asked to see me so that I could give the other side of the Chimbetu story from the late Dendera king's wife, Angela and Suluman. But Suluman did not turn up. I later learnt that he was not happy with Alan's version of the story I had written.

That suspicion characterised our relationship. His manager thouhg, Chiweshe made it possible for me and Suluman to talk again. 

Of course, I, just like everyone else had watched Suluman emerging from the backstage especially during his father’s last days and early days of his illness.

One such event was the Beit Bridge gala which was Simon Chimbetu’s one of the last gigs. During then, Simon was visibly ill and his suits could no longer sit on him properly.

Suluman together with his uncle, Alan took over.

At the time, Alan was the apparent sole heir to the Dendera beat. After all he had been there with his brother Simon and together with the late Briam, they had kept the band going when Simon was in jail.

That was everybody’s mistake number one.

After Simon’s death, I interviewed Alan who assured the nation that all was well. Alan inherited everything except Simon’s wife, Angela and the children. Unlike Simon who looked after the whole family, Alan did not. This left Suluman with the burden of being a father to his more than 10 siblings.

At the time, Suluman had left his job with the Air Force of Zimbabwe to take up a permanent position on the stage.

According to Simon’s wife, Angela, the family fell on hard times and Suluman had to be a man and

From The Zimbabwe Herald
by Fred Zindi, 6th March 2012

I have for a long time tried hard not to write about The Frontline Kids because, first of all, the formation of this band was my project and, secondly, because I avoid talking about myself whenever possible due to the fear that I might be misconstrued as an egotist.

A friend of mine has often warned me against egotism and name-dropping. He describes an egotist as someone of low taste, who is more interested in himself than others. However, over the past 18 months that I have been writing this column, I have met so many people who have asked me why I have never written about the Frontline Kids. I have now decided to succumb to the pressure. So here we go!

It was on April 17 1987, on the eve of Zimbabwe’s seventh independence anniversary when I was Director of Ceremonies and stage manager of the Independence Celebrations at Rufaro Stadium in Harare.

The celebrations began around 6pm. At around midnight, The Rusike Brothers, Lovemore Majaivana, Paul Matavire, Robson Banda, The Four Brothers, Ilanga, Talking Drum, Comrade Chinx and Simon Chimbetu had done their performances.

I was just about to introduce Thomas Mapfumo on the stage when I was suddenly interrupted by this young man who jumped onto the stage before the bouncers could stop him.

He said: “Mukoma Fred tiri chikwata chekuDzivarasekwa. Tine shungu dzekuridzawo nhasi. (We are a group from Dzivarasekwa and we want to be included on the bill tonight).”

I politely thanked this young man and told him that the show had been organised months before tonight’s event and there was no way we were going to interfere with the programme to accommodate his group.

However, I gave him my telephone number if he wished to participate in the following year’s celebrations. I forgot about this incident until three months later when I received a call from Bob Manwere reminding me about my promise t

Musical artist

Simon Chimbetu (23 September 1955 – 14 August 2005) was a Zimbabwean guitarist, vocalist and composer. He was the founding member of his band Orchestra Dendera Kings. He was known by many stage names, including "Chopper, "Mr Viscose" (before imprisonment), "Cellular", "Simomo" and "Mukoma Sam".

Early life

Chimbetu was born in the Musengezi area of Mbire District in Mashonaland Province of Southern Rhodesia, on 23 September 1955. He was of the Yao tribe and his ancestral roots can be traced to the town of Tukuyu, in Southern Tanzania. His father Benson Mwakalile was a bricklayer and Simon regularly accompanied his father on his business errands. He attended the local Musengezi High School before trekking to Harare(then Salisbury) to look for employment.

Rhodesian Bush War

During the Rhodesian Bush War, Chimbetu went to Tanzania to join the Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU), which employed him as an entertainer for its guerrillas in exile. At some point prior to 1980, Chimbetu returned to Rhodesia.

Return to Harare

Chimbetu worked for a tobacco processing company for many years after the attainment of Zimbabwe's internationally recognised independence in 1980. His passion for music did not wane. Rather, he regularly played at Mushandirapamwe Hotel in Highfield, a high-density suburb in Harare. At this point he was backed by John Chibadura's Sungura Boys as he did not have his o

Albums

1. Syllubus

   23 listeners

   18 Oct 2021 · 8 tracks

2. Gunship

   15 listeners

   23 Jan 2023 · 11 tracks

3. Non Stop

   4 listeners

   9 Feb 2022 · 8 tracks

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