System Tazvida

Who is System Tazvida?

Funuel Tazvida, best known as System Tazvida, was a Zimbabwean musician very popular in his home country mainly in the 1990s, though not as well known internationally. Tazvida wrote and performed songs mainly in his native Shona tongue.

Tazvida was best known for his hits Anodyiwa Haataure and Mushandi Ndimambo. However, it was his 1993 hit Rudo Tsika Nemagariro which propelled him to national stardom.

Tazvida had played with various bands including the Khiama Boys, the Mabhauwa Express and the Sungura Boys before he formed the Chazezesa Challengers. The Challengers included his brother Peter on bass, a former member of Nyami Nyami Sounds, guitarist LeeRoy Lunga, who had played with the Super Sounds and the Kasongo Band, and Lucky Mumiriki as percussionist, who had played with the Hurungwe Sounds and the Sungura Boys.

The band blended elements of sungura, jazz, South African mbaqanga and traditional music. They recorded several successful albums in the mid-to-late 1990s, their first being Rudo Tsika Nemagariro, which sold more than 20,000 copies. Their album Mutunhu Unemago sold more than 30,000 copies. Popular songs included Anodyiwa Haature, Mabhauwa, and Vaforomani. They were also popular in Mozambique, and toured there.