Chiwonso, or Chiwoniso Maraire was a singer, songwriter and seminal artist in the Zimbabwean mbira music movement.
She was born in Olympia, Washington in 1986 and spent the first seven years of her life in the United States with the Seattle area, until returning to Zimbabwe for her high school education. At just 15-years-old, she formed part of the Afro-fusion hip-hop group, A Peace of Ebony, perhaps the first attempt at modernising mbira music.
Chiwoniso had also fronted her own acoustic group Chiwoniso & Vibe Culture since the mid-90s. Her initial album Ancient Voices released in 1995 and received a rapturous reception internationally. She went on to record a further three records, Timeless (2005), Hupenyu Kumusha, Life at Home, Impilo Ekhaya. The Collaboration: Volume 1 (2006), and Rebel Woman (2008). She notably also became a prominent member of the multinational all-women band Women’s Voice from 2001 – 2004, featuring renowned female artists from across every continent.
Genre description: Zimbabwean Mbira
Location: Zimbabwe
Chiwonso, or Chiwoniso Maraire was a singer, songwriter and seminal artist in the Zimbabwean mbira music movement.
She was born in Olympia, Washington in 1986 and spent the first seven years of her life in the United States with the Seattle area, until returning to Zimbabwe for her high school education. At just 15-years-old, she formed part of the Afro-fusion hip-hop group, A Peace of Ebony, perhaps the first attempt at modernising mbira music.
Chiwoniso had also fronted her own acoustic group Chiwoniso & Vibe Culture since the mid-90s. Her initial album Ancient Voices released in 1995 and received a rapturous reception internationally. She went on to record a further three records, Timeless (2005), Hupenyu Kumusha, Life at Home, Impilo Ekhaya. The Collaboration: Volume 1 (2006), and Rebel Woman (2008). She notably also became a…
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