Tanzania's The Zawose Queens announce Debut album Maisha on Real World
Pendo and Leah Zawose's Maisha is a groundbreaking release and a long-awaited first by female members of one of Tanzania's most famous musical families.
The Zawose Queens are Pendo and Leah Zawose, from the city of Bagamoyo in Tanzania, East Africa. They have just announced details of their debut album Maisha, a potent ancient-to-future sound combining traditional polyrhythms and percussion with subtle electronic production, courtesy of Oli Barton-Wood (Jordan Rakei, Obongjayar, Nilufer Yanya) and Tom Excell (Nubiyan Twist, Onipa).
'Maisha' is the first track 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.
Pendo and Leah Zawose showcase the fluid polyrhythms and rapturous polyphonic singing of the Gogo (aka Wagogo) people of central Tanzania's arid, hilly Dodoma region. The most famous exponent of this musical tradition is the late great Dr Hukwe Zawose (Pendo's father and Leah's grandfather).
The album will be released on Peter Gabriel's Real World Records, the label on which the late Hukwe Zawose released several 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.
