Dudus Rites of Passage

Dudu Manhenga

To celebrate 15 years in the music industry, Dudu Manhenga will tomorrow give a rare concert at the Rainbow Towers in Harare. Dubbed Rites of Passage, the show is the artists musical biography that will focus on her journey, challenges and victories, which deserve recognition and celebration.

Rites of Passage was conceived to inspire others and to give rare insights into Manhengas life and career by showcasing her as a young African artist, storyteller, singer-songwriter, sister and wife who has gone through life and career transitions and challenges while still managing to propel herself to greater achievements.

The event will feature poetry, dance and musical performances guided by the underlying theme Rites of Passage. It will feature a special performance by the Cool Crooners, a dinner and a multimedia presentation that includes images from her childhood, her life and how her career has progressed.

Dudu said the performance by the Cool Crooners is especially appropriate as in African tradition rites of passage for one who has come of age are conducted by elders in the community. Their appearance at the show is an endorsement of her musical prowess and achievements. It is set to give direction and further impetus to her career.This will be a special show for me and hopefully the audience . . . it will not be the usual performance where I get onto the stage and perform a set of songs, said Dudu in an interview recently. 

We will tell the story of my life and career in a unique multi-disciplinary way using performances and multi-media. Manhenga said that fans should expect a lot of surprises at the show, which will also see her launching the musical career of uZanele, a young singer who has been under Dudus tutorship and mentorship for the past 5 years. This is part of her mentorship programme under which she intends to work with young women and launch the artistic career of at least one young female artist every year. 

Since forming the band Colour Blu with husband Blessing Muparutsa in 2001, the talented jazz singer-songwriter has released four albums and was appointed to the National Arts Council of Zimbabwe board. 

She is also Red Cross Zimbabwe Ambassador and the brand ambassador for Rainbow Tourism Group (RTG). Last year, the songstress won an award from The Diplomat magazine where she came second runner-up in the Non-diplomat Contributing to Diplomacy category. 

Dudus career has seen her undertaking successful regional and international tours including performances in Italy, South Africa and Mozambique. The show was put together in partnership with RTG, Manhengas company Afrobead and Luckybean Productions, an event management company that brought the Soweto String Quartet to Harare last year. (Daiynews)