C O V E R S T O R Y
We had a long overdue sit down to catch up with Gemma Griffiths . Queening with ' Mambokadzi ', she received rave reviews from all over for the female empowerment anthem . Gemma takes us through her journey from singing covers to awardwinning top charting singles . She remains the down-to-earth star whom everyone relates to . She creates music that gives language and a voice to people ’ s prayers on ' Titungamire ', by giving hope in the trying times we are engulfed in . Celebrating love and companionship in ' Ndinewe ' which marries her passion for travel and song so perfectly . Gemma of course became Zimbabwe ’ s sweetheart after her feature on Winky D ' s 2019 smash hit , ' MuGarden '. In 2020 alone Gemma was awarded a NAMA , Female artiste of the year at ZIMA and was shortlisted for the MTV Africa Music awards in 2021 .
GM : We are excited to have you back Gemma , when we last spoke we were raving about your claim to fame being the Winky D ' Musarova Bigman ' rendition . Years later you not only co ~ wrote a song with the guy but you have done multiple shows with MuGarden shifting roofs off entire buildings when you perform . You have also featured Ammara Brown in your song ' Mambokadzi ' and started 2020 on a high becoming the definition of the next level . We loved seeing the many queens who appear in this video , talk to us about that majestic effort ?
Mambokadzi was an incredible project that came from the passion and drive of both myself and Ammara . We wanted to create something that celebrated women lifting each other up , which I hope we did . Visually I knew it was important to push the boundaries of what has been done , and this took a full team of styling , creatives and an amazing director , Marc Neilson to do .
GM : Would you say that you have always known yourself , what you want , your dreams , your giftings and have you stepped into your purpose if you look at your life in retrospect ?
I definitely think I have always known my direction and purpose , I always wanted to be a singer and am besotted
We wanted to create something that celebrated women lifting each other up ,
with my country , so they were always going to go hand in hand . That doesn ’ t mean it ’ s a walk in the park , it takes a lot of determination to work towards something like music .
GM : Many people we have spoken to about you have been curious to know how you know Shona so well and what myth do you think this has shattered across Africa concerning inter-cultural relations ?
I am Zimbabwean ; I grew up in Zimbabwe ; I went to school and church and music lessons in Harare . I took my first steps there . So I spoke Shona with friends , and my band , around town … this should be the norm . Music transcends so much in this world , culture , age , gender , it ' s incredibly powerful .
GM : Congratulations ! You won 4 awards at ZIMA how does this feel and what does this mean for your music career ?
Thank you so much ( smiles ) what an incredible way to begin 2020 . I feel so blessed to be in this incredible industry , next to such talented artists . This will definitely encourage me to keep making music .
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