"Mweya weToyitoyi – the spirit of protest": re-inventing toyi-toyi in Zimbabwean hip hop. (4th May 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Kellerer, Katja
• Is Part Of: Social dynamics. Volume 43:Number 2(2017)
• Page Start: 199
• Page End: 214
• Publication Date: 2017-05-04
• Subjects: Hip-hop -- music and politics -- toyi-toyi -- Zimbabwe; Africa -- Culture -- Periodicals; African literature -- Periodicals; Developing countries -- Politics and government -- Periodicals; 960.05
• DOI: 10.1080/02533952.2017.1364466
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0253-3952

Abstract

Abstract: At the turn of the millennium, Zimbabwe's ruling party commissioned a large-scale cultural nationalist project. Urban youth music was particularly targeted in an effort to (re)gain the support of young voters, who largely had come out in support of the opposition. While some young artists utilised the state-subsidised platforms to further their careers, others refused to be categorised under the banner of urban grooves and resisted taking advantage of state sponsorship. Particularly members of the small, but vibrant Hip-hop community have continued to critically engage with and question Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front's hegemonic and authoritative discourse through their music. In this article, I aim to illustrate this youth resistance through Hip-hop music by closely analysing selected song texts by three artists – Dizzy Don, Outspoken and Biko MC. Albeit different with regards to their ideological understanding of Hiphop, all three have released songs in which they reappropriate elements of toyi-toyi, a civic form of protest rooted in southern Africa's liberation wars. By doing so, they do not only add a local aesthetic to their music, but also reshape the meaning of toyi-toyi by applying it to new contexts. In fact, by counteracting the revival of chimurenga songs through the ruling party, the artists voice and define their own understanding of Zimbabwe's past and present situation.