Transit Crew in shambles

Local reggae outfit Transit Crew has hit hard times after it was deserted by its lead vocalists. Rungano Chaza and Jeffrey Sithole are the latest vocalists to ditch the band owing to misunderstandings over money, sources said. Enjoy one of their song below:

Chaza and Sithole’s departure follows that of another crucial member Emmanuel “Mannex” Motsi, who left the band for greener pastures. The group now has one vocalist, young Tinashe Gamure, the nephew of the late reggae crooner Culture T, who joined the band last year.

 As a result of problems Transit Crew has ended its marriage with Mega 2 Westgate, which had become their usual Friday hunting ground, due to a gradual decrease in attendances. They have also failed to secure an alternative venue following the closure of Book Café. Transit Crew had reportedly tried to lure Nadine Brown, but Andy Brown’s widow appeared to have her husband’s band The Storm at heart at the moment.

In an interview, Munya Nyemba, one of the longest serving members and bassist at Transit, confirmed that the band had hit hard times. “Yes, we lost Sithole and Chaza for reasons I don’t know yet. This is a blow to us and we are now focusing on Gamure. “He is still young and this means we need to teach him all the songs and I believe with time all will be well,” he said.

“We have lost most of our venues and with the closure of Book Café things are not well. We can go for two weeks without a show.“We are not that worried by the departure of the guys because it is part of our mission to groom youngsters, who are the future of reggae music.”

One of Transit Crew’s son, Emmanuel Motsi, who formed his band MoFamilee Crew is doing quite well on the music scene.  Motsi, the man behind the song Rozi, which also did a lot in putting Transit Crew on the music map in 2009 left the band last year in December.

He then toured Europe where he held a number of shows in Slovakia, Czech Republic and Germany.
A number of local reggae musicians have passed through Transit Crew and these include Mike Madamombe (Mic Inity), lead vocalist Solomon Tokwe, the late Tendai Gamure, Culture T, Junior Banton, Emmanuel Frank and keyboardist Jairos Hambahamba.

In 1989 Transit Crew had the privilege of playing alongside Culture, Eric Donaldson, and Ijahman Levi, who were all backed by Rough Cuts Band during a tour of Zimbabwe.  The group has toured South Africa, Japan and United Kingdom.

They have also played as supporting act for numerous international artists such as Misty in Roots, Dennis Brown, Luciano and Mickey General in Jamaica, UK poet Zephaniah Benjamin and the late Lucky Dube. Newsday