The Zawose Queens from Tanzanian musical dynasty announce debut album Maisha

There is spirit and fire in the music of The Zawose Queens. There’s the vibrations of the ancestors, coming through on traditional instruments — soaring chizeze fiddle, buzzing illimba thumb piano, ngoma drums that chatter and thunder — and voices that go deep, high and out there. There’s the connection to nature, to ceremony and ritual, in their dance-inspired fusion, their blend of the organic, harmonic and modern-day electronic. There are lyrics that tell, in their native kigogo, of the passion for music, the wonders of life. Of pride in environment, in tradition. In their East African roots.

Pendo and Leah Zawose showcase the fluid polyrhythms and rapturous polyphonic singing of the Gogo (aka Wagogo) people of the arid, hilly Dodoma region of central Tanzania. The most famous exponent of this musical tradition is the late, great Dr Hukwe Zawose (Pendo’s father and Leah’s grandfather).

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Maisha, the debut album by The Zawose Queens, marks the first time that women from this famous musical family take their place as lead vocalists and performers. Emboldened by workshops in songwriting and music production with visiting UK-based producers Oli Barton-Wood (Jordan Rakei, Obongjayar, Nilufer Yanya) and Tom Excell (Nubiyan Twist, Onipa), The Zawose Queens began writing their first ever songs. The resulting collection of songs range from the stripped back and traditional-sounding to those treated with subtle electronic elements, with beats and drops and found sounds and switch-ups.

‘Maisha’ is the first track to be shared from the forthcoming album. Its lyrics tell of the daily fight for a better life, and its potent ancient-to-future sound finds the Queens on vocals, illimba and percussion, with Wamwiduka Band on backing vocals and percussion and club-focused production including drums, synths and 808 bass.

The album will be released on Real World Records, the label on which the late Hukwe Zawose released a number of recordings in the 1990s. Hukwe performed at numerous WOMAD festivals and toured with the organization around the world, as well as supporting Peter Gabriel on his Growing Up tour in 2002. The Zawose Queens will follow in their father and grandfather’s footsteps by performing at WOMAD this July in Wiltshire.

The album Maisha will be released on CD, LP and digitally on 7 June 2024. The title track is now available on all digital platforms. The Zawose Queens will soon announce a series of Summer 2024 shows in the UK and Europe.

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