HER JOURNEY HER MUSIC
Even the largest avalanche
is triggered by small things. If this saying is to go by, Tribute ‘Birdie’ Mboweni is a true testimony to
how big things can really come in small packages. With this album, also titled “Birdie”,
Tribute has triggered an avalanche. As a singer and songwriter Birdie is proving to be a force to
reckon with. Her voice is so strong, soulful and wrapped up in both neo-soul,
pop world and yet so jazzy.
Birdie has joined a new
breed of soul musicians that are putting their own modern take on the classic
sound, and doing it justice. Her voice evokes raw, organic emotion that
penetrates deep into your heart and makes you feel some type of way, however
you want to define the feeling.
Recently selected to
perform amongst the graetest musicians at the Cape Town International Jazz
Festival on the 1st April 2016, Tribute Birdie Mboweni is definitely
the latest edition to what already is a highly competitve music scene but has
fast claimed her space. This petite singer has worked diligently to carve a
path that ensures that she too has a place in the music industry. She launched her album in May 2015 at a fully
packed Orbit Jazz restaurant in Braamfontein, Johannesburg and also at Ditsong
Historical Museum in Pretoria. In four
months since the release of her debut album,
Tribute Birdie Mboweni has performed in big festivals including her
performances at The Bush fire Festival in Swaziland end of May 2015, performing,
opening for Judith Sephuma at the State Theatre in Pretoria on the 18th
July 2015, performing alongside South Africa’s greatest at The Premium Jazz
festival at Carnival City on the 22 August 2015 and closed the year with a
performance at the Annual All White Jazz Festival in Mabopane, pretoria. It is
no surprise that The Cape Town International Jazz Festival has just recently
announced Tribute Birdie Mboweni as one of the artists officially booked for
the festival in March 2016.
Besides this album being
her debut offering, Tribute has long carved her niche as a performing artist
having serenaded audiences in the Middle East (Qatar and Dubai) where she took
up artist residence playing with a jazz band featuring some of South Africa’s
great musicians. No stranger to the
stage, she has performed at internatinal events such as at COP17 as well as at the
Earth Fest in Zambia, including a string of local concerts including the
Grahamstown National Arts Festival where she gave a stellar performance and
receiving great reviews for her soulful offering.
Spotted at the Born to Be
Famous Showcase by the label’s founder and owner, award-winning producer, Sipho
Sithole aka Malambule, Tribute has recorded an album that teaches us that music
recognises no barriers and can penetrate the hardest of hearts and unwrap the
most hidden emotions of love long lost in despair. In her own words, Tribute
testifies that she ‘found joy not in finishing the album but in the activity
that went into crafting and recording it, which proved that the ultimate
measure of success is the actual journey and not the destination”.
Her music expresses deep
feelings and is profoundly emotional, jazzy, ethno and yet so soulful. The
16-track album is full of songs that make one instantly fall in love with
Tribute ‘Birdie’ Mboweni.
THE ALBUM
THE SONGS AND WHAT THEY
MEAN
Nginjenjenje
Producer: Stephens Letsike; Co-writer: Lesego Diboshwa; Lyrics:
Tribute J Mboweni
Keyboard: Teboho Kobedi; Bass: Thembelihle Ndimande
Nginjenjenje is written in appreciation of everyone, including my family and
friends, who has supported me and loved me through the good and challenging
times. This is me saying, I would not have done the things that I have done so
far, without your love and support.
Hold On
Composer: Karabo Khoza; Lyrics: Tribute J Mboweni; Teboho Kobedi;
Bass: Thembelihle Ndimande; Guitar: Themba Mokoena
Hold On is an encouragement to any and every person who is going through
some or other challenge; whether it be finance related, matters of the heart or
challenges that affect those who are dear to us. This song aims to encourage
you to hold on because eventually, it does get better.
Coffee
Producer: Stephen Letsike; Lyrics: Tribute Mboweni; Keyboard: Teboho
Kobedi; Bass: Mlungisi Gegana
Coffee is simply an introduction to me: A laid-back, short and doe-eyed
woman who cares about creation and humanity, who mostly chooses not to fret
over the small things that most people often worry about.
Not For Me
Lulama Revlamar Mayaba; Lyrics: Tribute J Mboweni; Arranger: Musa
Mdluli; Keyboard: Teboho Kobedi; Bass: Thembelihle Ndimande
Not For Me expresses a feeling of uncertainty over whether to stay or walk
away from a relationship. The person in question feels that she is somehow
being shut out, which results in the question of whether to stay or walk away.
Soul ‘n Heart
Composer: Mthandeni Mvelase; Lyrics: Tribute Mboweni; Guitar: Themba
Mokoena; Bass: Thembelihle Ndimande;
Keyboards: Mthandeni Mvelase; Other Instruments: Mthandeni Mvelase
Soul ‘n Heart is a tribute to my late Mother, Busisiwe Sibeko, who passed on 7
years ago. In this song, I tell her of my ever-present love for her, how it
feels like she was here just yesterday; and I give her an update on my younger
siblings’ growth. This was by far the hardest song to record, and one I am
happy I finally managed to write.
Skit: Uyakhuyuma
MaGumede
Composer: Dorothy Masuka; Publisher: Re-arranged by: Thulani Sithela;
Keyboard: Teboho Kobedi; Bass: Thembelihle Ndimande; Guitar: Themba Mokoena
MaGumede is a tribute to Mama Dorothy Masuka, this after being honoured to
be the face of the 2014 Moshito Music Conference alongside her; and being
handed a microphone by her as a baton that I should continue to run with. This
is my version of the song MaGumede, which is originally hers.
N’warikapanyana (An ode to
a bird)
Producer: Malambule;
Composer: Mthandeni Mvelase; Lyrics: Tribute J Mboweni; Keyboards: Tebogo
Kobedi; Guitar: Themba Mokoena; Bass:
Thembelihle Ndimande; Backing Vocals:
Malambule/Thembelihle Ndimande
N’warikapanyana is an ode to the black-shouldered kite, a bird I grew up knowing as
n’warikapanyana. The chorus of this song is a song that we used to sing when we
were young, at the sight of the black-shouldered kite, also known as xikhozana
in Tsonga. Because of its flight behavior when hunting for rodents, we were
certain that the bird’s sudden flapping of its wings is prompted by us singing
to it; telling it to flap its wings lest we burn its beak. The song also gives
an account of the bird’s flight behavior. Having developed an interest in birds
while studying Ecotourism, and having worked with birds while on Dassen Island,
it’s no surprise that I should have a
song that is an ode to a bird.
Skit: Uyakhuyuma
Mpfula Ya Na
Lyrics: Tribute Mboweni; Keyboard: Teboho Kobedi; Bass: Thembelihle
Ndimande; Guitar: Themba Mokoena
Mpfula Ya Na is a celebration of the rain. The chorus is a song that we used to
sing as children growing up. We would sing this when it rained, mentioning the
harvest that would surely follow as a result of the rain: Marhanga (pumpkin),
swifaki (corn), timanga (peanuts), makwakwa (green monkey orange). The song in
its entirety speaks of how the summer season has come, and that it brings with
it, the rain. It encourages people to take to the fields with their working
tools to go and prepare the soil and plant anything that could be planted.
Because of how joyful we would be when singing about the rain, the song also
recognizes and speaks of the joy that fills the atmosphere as a result of the
downpour of the rain.
No More
Composer: Mpho Hlahla; Lyrics: Sipho Sithole; Keyboards: Nduduzo Makhathini; Bass: Mandla Zikalala;
Backing Vocals: Putuma Tiso
No More details the suffering that humanity all over the world is faced with
as a result of the wars and the bloodshed that come with them. This song is a
cry to the world, for peace. It simply says, it is enough!
Skit: Uyakhuyuma
Bombani
Composer: Sipho Sithole; Lyrics: Tribute Mboweni; Bass: Thembelihle
Ndimande, additional programming by Sthembiso Twala
Bombani is a celebratory song. It speaks of a celebratory ceremony that is
happening in the family, and encourages the people to wear their traditional
attire, dance and show off their beauty.
Summer Day
Composer: Ndivhuho Nethononda; Lyrics: Tribute J Mboweni; Keyboard:
Teboho Kobedi
Summer Day is a jolly song that celebrates children. It encourages everyone to
love, embrace and let them just have fun playing, dancing and singing.
Khomanani
Producer: Nhlanhla Cabral Makwe; Lyrics: Tribute J. Mboweni; Bass:
Thembelihle Ndimande
Khomanani, which means “Unite” was written to encourage Africans to unite and
to realise that although we may come from different parts of the continent, we
all are the same, and so are the challenges we all face. It would do us well to
embrace each other and unite in tackling the socio-economic challenges which we
all face.
Lerato
Composer: Sipho Ray Sithole/Amil Sage; Produced by: The Urban
Afreekans; Lyrics: Tribute J Mboweni
Lerato is a conversation between a woman and her lover. The woman is
reminiscing about and detailing the dynamics of the relationship, and
essentially how she feels about this person, starting from the first day they
met; while her lover is reassuring her and asking her to trust in their love
for each other.
_____________________________________________________
Recording Details:
Recorded and Mixed at Native Rhythms Studios, Johannesburg by
Sthembiso Twala. Mastered by Rogan Kelsey at Lapdust Studios, Johannesburg.
Artwork by Derick Taljaard (Inkhaus). Photoshoot by Katlego
Styling by Velile Sithole
Website: http://birdieworldwide.com/
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