B I O G R A P H Y
Ramadu´s Mum, Brother, Sister and Cousin
Ramadu´s small family,
Grandmothers, Uncles, Brothers, Niece and Sisters
The populous suburb of Mzilikazi in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, is well known for having produced the best sportspersons in Zimbabwe. The two high schools in the suburb, Sobukazi and Mzilikazi, are powerhouses in various schools sporting activities, particularly soccer. The suburb is home to Babourfields Stadium, the hunting ground of Zimbabwe’s oldest soccer team, Highlanders football club. The cream of Zimbabwean soccer players has emerged from the suburb, but naming them might derail us from our mission.
There have also been success stories in other fields in this suburb, which is named after the founder and Godfather of the Ndebele nation.
It is in Mzilikazi Township that an artist of great transcendence emerged. Here we are talking of Dumisani “Ramadu” Moyo, an internationally acclaimed musician of a rare calibre. He ranks among the finest and most successful performing artists from Zimbabwe, presenting himself as a true revelation to Southern African traditional and contemporary music.
Blessed with a scintillating voice, dazzling dancing skills and ability to play various music instruments, Ramadu has become one of the most acclaimed performing artists to emerge from Africa. In addition to playing the acoustic guitar and percussions on stage, Ramadu is also a good bass guitarist, but prefers playing it as a hobby.
Already with two albums to his credit, and a third one to be out any time from now, one might be misled to believe that Ramadu’s road to fame was a mere doodle. It took endurance of pain brought about by prejudice, stereotypes and limited financial resources.
The story of Ramadu shows that the birth of an artist is not an easy task, but it requires dedication and preparedness to fight against all odds and stumbling blocks.
It is wise not to divert focus by focusing on bygones, the hustles that Ramadu went through as he sang his way to stardom.
Whereas for others it is charity that begins at home, for Ramadu it is stardom. Ramadu’s musical and artistic skills were first recognized in his family when during his primary school days, he would entertain his uncle and other family members with breathtaking half hour performances, usually in return for sweets or an extra piece of meat during dinner. It is then that Ramadu realized there was more than singing for a piece of meat and a few cents, thus discovering his bond to the traditional music and dance of his culture.
At the tender age of 12 he found himself singing in the school choir at Mzilikazi Primary School, where he began his education. Teachers and pupils were all unanimous that a great artist was in emerging in the young Ramadu, who had defied age to become one of the key members of the school choir.
Ramadu’s success story will be incomplete without mentioning celebrated "Kalanga” singer and dancer Mr. Malaba, who used to visit schools around Bulawayo, conducting music and dance lessons. Mr Malaba’s vision was for the youths to revive their culture through dance and song. This amplified Ramadu’s artistic instincts, widening the gleam of light that had already begun to shine in him.
A new chapter was opened, and a star was born.
After a few years of aspiration, boosted by self-evaluation and encouragement from friends and family members, Ramadu’s dream of making music his career was not turned into a nightmare. In 1990, at the age of 15, he joined Insingizi Emnyama Performing Arts Project, an all male performing arts group. When Ramadu joined Insingizi Emnyama, he sang as a backing vocalist and played traditional African drums.
From Ghetto to Hollywood
This is how it happened. In his early teens, just after joining Insingizi Emnyama, Ramadu was co-opted into a Hollywood film that was shot in Bulawayo’s suburbs of Matshobana, Makokoba and surrounding areas. Entitled "Power of One”, the film’s soundtrack featured great artists from different countries, among them Hollywood star Morgan Freeman.
The soundtrack for “Power of One” was produced under the directorship of Hollywood greats Hans Zimmer, Lebo M as well as Johnny Clegg from South Africa.
At the time, Ramadu was too young to be included amongst the actors, as all artists from Bulawayo were also taking part as extras and singers in the film. Realising his qualities, the directors allowed Ramadu to sing and record a few songs for the film’s soundtrack. This saw Ramadu being involved in such songs as Sayiwela (The river song), which became very popular with the film’s viewers.
The involvement in the production of “Power of One” made the young Ramadu to aim higher in his art career, as he could not see what could stop him from reaching the level that had been reached by the other members of the team he worked with.
Ramadu's family
Scaling new heights
This propelled the group into fame in and around Bulawayo, but their happiest moment was in 1995 when they were invited to make a European tour for the first time in 1995.
The tour not only brought huge financial incentives for Ramadu and the group, but also resulted in their finding of a second home.
Ramadu and his friends settled in Austria in 1996. Their determination in the arts was not deterred by the new home and new lifestyle. Like the rest of Insingizi, Ramadu grabbed all opportunities coming his way to develop his career.
In 1997 he attended the college of music in Graz, Austria where he studied music theory, classic guitar and choral singing for 3 years. This widened his understanding of music from different parts of the world. It also gave him the much-needed opportunity to evaluate himself, his strengths and weaknesses.
The relocation to Austria, although it has now proven worth the cause, was at first a daunting task. Despite the community in that country showing great affection for African contemporary music, it was difficult for Ramadu and his peers to settle down very well.
Insingizi
Learning a new language (German) was a mammoth task, especially for Ramadu and company, who could communicate only in English and their mother language, IsiNdebele.
Ramadu managed to shrug all this off and today he works harmoniously with people from various races in all parts of the world. It takes nothing more than determination. His performances and other projects have endeared Ramadu to various artists in Austria and neighbouring countries who take turns to engage him in their productions.
Now Ramadu is well established in Austria, where in addition to his musical projects, he conducts workshops and training for up and coming artists, mostly in djembe, drums and other musical instruments.
Ramadu managed to shrug all this off and today he works harmoniously with people from various races in all parts of the world. It takes nothing more than determination. His performances and other projects have endeared Ramadu to various artists in Austria and neighbouring countries who take turns to engage him in their productions.
Now Ramadu is well established in Austria, where in addition to his musical projects, he conducts workshops and training for up and coming artists, mostly in djembe, drums and other musical instruments.
Cultural Background
The similarity of Ndebele and Zulu is clear in the clicks sounds, which can can be heard in Miriam Makeba´s and Ladysmith Black Mambazo’s songs.
Traditional life in Zimbabwe continues to change, albeit at an alarming rate, as people relocate from different places. The language has also been influenced greatly by this intermingling of different cultural groups. In some cases, particularly among the youth, slang seem to be the order of communication, as they use imported
The Ndebele, however, get most of the influence from South Africa than any other part of the world. If one were to carry out a survey, you would discover that about 99% families among the Ndebele speaking communities have at least one member staying in or regularly frequenting South Africa. This has seen their trend of life change simultaneously with and in line to that of the South Africans.
As such, the music from Bulawayo, just like the language and lifestyle, is very much influenced from South Africa.
Most Zimbabweans can now communicate in at least Shona and Ndebele, as evidenced in Izambulelo where Ramadu sang two tracks in the Shona language (Mwari-we-My God and Hama Dzavo-Relatives).
The secret in Ramadu, the name
Ramadu´s original name ´Dumisani´ which means ´to praise´, is one of the most popular among the Ndebele tribe, usually implying that the supernatural be praised for the new member of the family. His family name ´Moyo´ means ´heart´. It is popular among both the Ndebele and Shona. The Moyo clan is usually associated with the abaLozwi from the Matopos area or the Rozvi from the southeastern parts of Zimbabwe. The Rozvi/AbaLozvi are believed to be the first group of people to live in Zimbabwe, and were influential throughout the history of the country.
It should however be noted that the name Ramadu is not in any way culturally inspired.
Many have wondered what this exceptional name “Ramadu” means, with some have gone to the extent of associating it with the Ramada, a Jewish celebration.
In IsiNdebele, Ramadu’s mother language, people christened Dumisani (IsiNdebele for Praise) are usually informally referred to as Dumi or Dumara.
He however felt uncomfortable with Dumi or Dumara, but the only avenue out of this was to come up with something more appealing and acceptable to his scores of fans and friends. Feeling he was an out of the ordinary (indeed he is), and unparalleled character, Ramadu did not discard the name Dumara.
In an artistic gesture, he instead decided to use from its end, Ra- Ma-Du. There is no cultural meaning associated with the name “Ramadu. He adopted it in 2001 when he ventured into his solo career.
Ramadu’s Vision for the arts
A number of potential artists who could have changed the face of music in Zimbabwe have failed to realise their dream, not because they are not capable, but because they have poor financial back up. Ramadu’s vision is thus to assist potential artists who have been suppressed by poor financial back up and psychological support. Most talented youngsters have failed to sing to recognition, as poor financial and technical backup has turned their dreams into nightmares.
Some are people are born artists, whereas others are groomed into artists. The establishment of the music academy, studio and agency will make life easier for all aspiring artists.
Some artists have cried foul after being ripped off by unscrupulous studios and music promoters. Ramadu’s aim is to ensure that artists get the best out of their efforts and the studio and music agency will do just that, in addition to putting Zimbabwean artists on the international map.
Experience with various international artists as well as expertise gathered during the three years of training at the College of Music in Graz, Austria will go a long way in grooming the young artists into real professionals and cultural ambassadors.
In the face of high poverty levels and general hopelessness, a number of youths have resorted to unhealthy survival means.
Ramadu has successfully trained artists in Austria and his wide exposure with people from various nationalities is also likely to benefit the Zimbabwean music and arts industry.
Ramadu and Insingizi
Many usually think that the group has been dismantled. The group is still intact, despite the membership having fallen to the current three. Ramadu’s Afro-Vibes band is not in any way a break away group from Insingizi. In fact, the other members of Insingizi
Vusa Ndlovu and Zibuziso “ Nqo” Nkomo also work with the Afro-Vibes Band. The Insingizi schedule is tight, keeping all the members busy, mostly preparing for tours and live performances. Besides the tight schedule of Insingizi, Ramadu, as a professional artist, manages his time well and manages to distribute the time evenly between his commitments for Insingizi and the solo project.
At the beginning of 2004, the three-member group, Insingizi produced a 17 track CD, Voices of Southern Africa that was released, marketed and distributed by Arc Music International, which also distributes Ramadu’s music. The CD was the first production by the three members after the majority left the group to work on other things. It has already received overwhelming acclaim and massive airplay from radio stations across Europe and the Americas. In April 2004, the CD was among the best on top of Canadian World music charts.
Details of the album are available on the main Insingizi or Arc Music website.
With Insingizi, Ramadu has also worked with various international artists. Among them is Hans Theessink, popularly known in Europe as the "Euro-Blues Master" on his 2004 album called "Bridges".
Ramadu and The Afro Vibes Band
The Afro-Vibes Band is made up of nine excellent, professional freelance musicians from various nationalities, brought together by Ramadu to play his music live in concerts. The members are drawn from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Austria and Zimbabwe.
Ramadu’s colleagues at Insingizi, Vusa and Nqo also work with the Afro Vibes band.
Their music blends characteristics of Southern African Isicathamiya (acappella man voices), African Makosa and Western popular music which some music lovers have described as Afro-rock with wings of Funk and Soul.
Basically, Ramadu and his Band represent a new vision of young African culture, treating the audience to astounding harmonies, enchanting sounds, groove and highly energetic dance choreography.
Such common instruments as the guitar, bass, keyboards and drums blended with traditional African instruments such as Djembe, Chekere, Juju shakers etc render the band as a true ambassadors for the entire Southern African community.
The Band has so far staged successful concerts and participated in festivals mostly around Austria, Denmark, the Czech Republic and Germany. In 2002 Ramadu and his Band performed in the Jazz festival in Austria the “Graz Meeting-African Roots”, where they rubbed shoulders with such music greats like Pharoah Sanders, Yusef Lateef, Zim Ngqawana, Trevor Watts and Cornelius Claudio Kreusch.
In recognition of their exceptional character, Ramadu and his Band were in 2003 duly honoured to be one of the opening acts when the city of Graz was officially named the European Cultural Capital 2003.
Although a strong fusion of modern sounds is evident in Ramadu and the Band’s music, the attempts to deliver more of acoustic music, emphasizing on the pure sound of Ramadu´s roots music from Southern Africa with two acoustic guitars, percussion with soft and hard groove and vocals, performing traditional dances and pure a cappella.
Despite the different nationalities and backgrounds from which the members of the band are drawn, the Afro-Vibes Band has become a most sought after group in Austria. Their latest offer, Forgive me brother has all the ingredients of a gem and has
Ramadu hopes to develop the Afro Vibes Band into a strong musical entity that will make a strong impact internationally.
