The Sunday News
Lungile Tshuma and Mbongeni Msimanga, Sunday Leisure Correspondents
LOVEMORE Majaivana hung the microphone for good and is never going to come out of retirement to please his diehard fans, who have shouted themselves hoarse, hoping that the music legend would heed their call, his mum has declared.
Majaivana’s failure to respond to calls from his legion of fans to record a new album or hold a concert in Zimbabwe had given people a glimmer of hope that the music great was considering their overwhelming entreaties. But that expectation has been extinguished for good.
In an interview with Sunday Leisure, Majaivana’s mother, MaNyathi declared that her son is not going to make a comeback.
“He no longer wants to sing. He has told us that he is no longer interested in singing and quit singing by the time he left the country. People should not expect anything from him,” she said emphatically.
There you have it people. It is done. It is finished. All hopes dashed. Treasure the Majee albums you have. Reminisce about his electrifying stage performances you had the privilege of witnessing because you will never experience new ones.
But why would such a talented musician, who had the world at his feet, just throw away the mic and move on?
“Just like his song Wakewashayina (he once excelled) say. Amankazana eng’thanda, oBessie beng’thanda, lath’ es’thanda. He achieved a lot of things,” MaNyathi revealed.
Since his departure in 2000, Majaivana has never set foot in Zimbabwe. It is only his wife, Jane ‘‘Bessie’’ Dube, who “surprised” the family when she paid them a visit in February this year.
Despite staying away from Zimbabwe, Majaivana is still taking care of his extended family.
“We are still communicating and whenever I am not feeling well, we let him know. Everything is going well for him in America, as we haven’t heard of him complaining. He neither holds a grudge nor is he angry at anyone. He just left the country when the economy was not performing. Just like many, he left the country seeking greener pastures. His departure has nothing to do with anything,” she said.
The third born in a family of eight, Majaivana is of Malawian origin. The music legend was born on 14 December 1952 in Lower Gweru in Midlands province. The family later moved to Bulawayo in the 1960s, where Majaivana continued with his primary education.
From his childhood, his mother said, Majaivana showed that he was going to be a great musician. The music great, arguably the most popular singer to come out of Bulawayo, showed signs that he was a musical prodigy and it was no surprise that he grew up to be a great musician.
“He grew up singing. Wherever he was, he could be singing and we were confident that he was going to be a good singer. His love for music is taken from his father who was a good singer as he sang at church and people could be left itching for more,” said MaNyathi.
Majaivana’s songs were originally penned by his mother and he would fine-tune them during rehearsals.
His songs were pregnant with meaning, a feat that made him one of the most respected, accomplished and sought after musician.
“He asked us to assist him in producing some of the songs. Long back, music used to send us a message. When he relocated to Harare, he would drive all the way from the capital city to take songs for recording. It’s me and my younger sister, who is based in Gweru, who were writing songs for him. My younger sister helped him to record in studios,” she said.
The adage “an apple never falls far away from the tree” may be true to offsprings of other, but for Magee it’s false as his sons have failed to follow his footsteps.
“His children are trying but they are failing to fill their father’s shoe. Randell once came here asking me to teach him what I used to do to his father, but I refused. I told that him that he is not going to take care of me like what my son has done,” she said.
