MANYAME AND SIBALO RELEASE DUET

Comfort Manyame and Daniel Sibalo have teamed up for a fresh rendition of the late gospel legend Brian Sibalo’s track “Ndiri Mufambi” due for release this week.

The duet retains the original accent while bringing in value enhancement add-ons like vocal diversity and a worked up tempo which gives the jam a trendy feel.

Manyame and Sibalo were best suited for the remix on two accounts. Daniel is Brian’s younger brother and did the lead vocals for the latter’s last album “Busa Nkosi.”

On the other hand, Manyame considers Brian to be his biggest influence and shares his worshiper-at-heart ethic.

The US-based Manyame told Rhemafest that the collaboration was a big deal for him because Brian was his role model while “Ndiri Mufambi” was one of his most loved songs.

“Brian Sibalo is my biggest influence and Ndiri Mufambi is one of my all-time favorite songs. I had always wanted to record the song,” Manyame said.

“I approached Daniel a year ago and asked if I could do it. He agreed to collaborate with me on it. We became very good friends.

“Last December Daniel was visiting Zimbabwe from his home base of SA and I organised for him to record with my producer Tremier Msipa.

“I recorded my lead vocals here in Texas in my home studio and the mixing and everything else was done in Harare,” he said.

Comfort said he started listening to Brian as a young Christian finding his feet in the mission.

“I loved his voice, lyrics and approach to music. He was willing to push the envelope and he did just that. He took gospel music to a new level, and for that I have a lot of respect for him and the work he did just that,” Manyame said.

Family spokesperson Ndabe Sibalo said the collaboration is poised to hit two birds with one stone as it will both propel the career of Daniel while revitalising the legacy of Daniel.

“After the previous report (“Sibalo never sang for money”) in which we discussed about the remix album for Brian’s songs meant to feature several established artists, Comfort was the first artist to approach us.

“We decided to have a rendition of Ndiri Mufambi which is one of Brian’s most popular tracks.

“Due to overwhelming request from Brian’s fans we realised it was time to do something. This is just the beginning. A full-length album is on the way.

“I must give credit to Comfort for his professionalism. He is a true gospel artist.

Manyame said that maintaining Brian’s legacy involved being open to innovation since Brian himself was never stagnant as an artist.

“As far as reviving his legacy, I think he already blazed the trail and laid the groundwork for a lot of us. I think because Brian was not willing to be confined in a box, we are also pushing the envelope

“Brian stepped outside the realm of what was considered gospel music by improving the art beyond what his contemporaries were ready to do. We are also going all-out to create not just music which carries the gospel message but good music.

“I always imagine what type of music Brian would be doing if he was alive. One thing about Brian is that his music was not monotonous; it was not one-dimensional. You were always guaranteed that his next album would different and better but still Brian. He moved with the times and stepped up to the challenge.

“When you listen to our version of Ndiri Mufambi, that's what we were going for – maintaining the original melody but getting something in there that takes it to this generation as far as worship is concerned. I added a bridge at the end of the song where I am just worshiping.

“We did not want to do exactly what Brian did, who can compete with Brian? But we wanted to do it our own way but still maintain elements of the old and hence the original feel of the song.

Sibalo is one of the pioneers of Zimbabwean gospel music and remains one of the finest artists ever to emerge from the country. While most telly viewers are familiar with the video “Tinokutendai Baba,” Sibalo was the genius behind such hit albums including “Revival Time,” “Thula Moya,” “Jerusalem,” “Ndiri Mufambi (I am a Pilgrim)” “Oh Hallelujah” and “Sizofika Ezulwini.”