Sizwe Sibiya
If you cannot fight on the frontlines in the army, as an artist you can stand up for what you believe in behind the brush or microphone. And that is exactly what Zimbabwean rapper Gerald Mugwenhi is doing with his music.
After releasing his first album SynCity in 2012, the award winning hip-hop artist, who is widely known by his stage name Synik, has managed to put together another album, A Travel Guide for the Broken.
While SynCity explored the harsh conditions that have forced many Zimbabweans to flee the country, his new album which was released on 10 March, talks about all the challenges he is now facing in Lisbon, Portugal, where he is called a “refugee”.
Synik uses his love for words to portray a vivid picture of immigrant life across the 12 songs on the album. He depicts in detail how refugees – after fleeing their home country – go on to endure xenophobia and work long hours for exploitative wages.
“Ultimately, the music does not only document this brokenness, it seeks to offer a path, a travel guide, if you will, to healing,” Synik told the Greedy South.
The album features an array of musicians from Zimbabwe, Portugal, United States, Botswana, Angola, Finland, Ukraine, Colombia, Martinique, Argentina and Brazil, so it is also a true definition of boom-bap rap with a mix of contemporary unique sounds. This also gives the album a tribal theme that can be compared with rappers like Little Sims who is a British-Nigerian rapper.
Image source: The Conversation
