Killer T

A Zimdancehall musical gala held on Saturday August 6 at the Glamis Arena in the capital, Harare, was like any other such event: fun and entertaining – until Killer T entered the stage.

Things went a rung up. Fans became delirious as they screamed, “The Chairman!” even before the chanter could sing his first song

They simultaneously chorused lines from different Killer T songs, as if trying to outbid each other in submitting their preferred playlist for the artiste to perform.

The venue was packed and the event was a commemoration of the life of Soul Jah Love, born Soul Musaka, a Zimdancehall legend who succumbed to diabetes in 2021.

More than 80 established and upcoming dancehall artistes took turns to entertain the thousands of youths who thronged Glamis Arena that Saturday afternoon. The performances spilled into Sunday morning.

But it was Killer T who turned out to be the heart and soul of the gala.  Fans jostled to gain access of the stage and shoot pictures and videos of their hero. Killer T did not disappoint. He kept playing hit after hit and his sing along tunes kept the fans spellbound throughout.

“Mkoma chairman tazviona dance nderenyu moritonga kkkkk ma sing along awo should tell you something. (My brother, The Chairman, we take note you are the king of dancehall. All the sing along tunes are testimony to that),” remarked one fan, Colin Chikumbu, who live- streamed the show.

“Popopo!” others shouted the musician’s trademark chant, a mimicry of gun sound, that he throws at the beginning of most of his songs.

Zimdancehall artistes generally sing about crime, poverty, social issues and resistance to oppression but no one does it better than Killer T.

He sings about what ghetto people go through to fight poverty, including the abuse of drugs and crime. The artiste also has songs that touch on the challenges faced by orphans when growing up. One such song is Takakura zvakaoma, a track inspired by his own experience as an orphan growing up in Mbare.

Although he makes extensive use of Shona street lingo in his songs, Killer T’s music mostly tackles a much more serious subject: ordinary people’s everyday struggles.  The street lingo is popular with the youths.

“I sing what I come across every day. There are things that happen here in Mbare that are so interesting. In fact, I get inspiration from the people here. Their lifestyles, aspirations and challenges make me want to pen more songs.

Mbare has always been associated with evil things. They say criminals and crooks are harboured in the ghetto. What they do not know is that the ghettos have many talents. We have successful soccer players and musicians that have made it in life that were born and bred in the ghettos,” he said in an exclusive interview with the state-owned daily The Herald years back.

The Mbare-bred chanter cut his teeth in the streets of the capital’s oldest suburb in informal singing competitions.

His songs carry a message that resonates with his fans. He is an oasis of hope to many struggling ghetto youths as shown by the hit single, Ghetto Rine Nharo where the singer celebrates the hustling life of ghetto people. Killer T portrays the Ghetto as a melting pot of cultures and professions. The song, off the album, Ghetto Rinenharo Singles Collection is popular with fans at the musician’s live performances.

The Zimdancehall prodigy is also fond of highlighting common ghetto vices like drug abuse and crime. Masuspect is one song that unpacks ghetto crimes like the selling of fake maize seed and phones, while Guka highlights the dangers of drug and substance abuse that ghetto youth live with. In Guka, the singer recommends that drug addicts be taken for rehabilitation. The song brings out the evils of unemployed youths partaking in drugs; they end up committing crimes to raise money and sustain their habits.

But Killer T does not condone the crimes that hard-pressed ghetto youth commit just to survive although he understands why they have to do it.

“These people want to pay rent. They have to do what a man has to do to survive. I condemn their activities but I do not blame them,” he said.

To the downtrodden he is their hero, “The Chairman”, who gives them direction and purpose through song.

They love him for fighting in their corner.

“Ghetto youths tagged me ‘chairman of Zimdancehall’ after noticing my hard work and hearing my songs that are relevant as they identify with what they see and do on a daily basis,” he said explaining the genesis of the moniker.

Away from the showbiz world of glitz and glamour, Killer-T responds to the official name, Kelvin Kusikwenyu.

He was born on 10 January 1990 and is the last born in a family of five.

The 32-year old chanter was orphaned at an early age and was raised by his siblings in Mbare’s Matapi Flats. Most of his songs are stories that mirror the struggles in his early life.  Kelvin’s musical journey started as a hobby when he would perform for fun with his brother whose stage name is Temptation. The duo was known by the moniker Killer T, a combination of the two brothers’ stage names. Kelvin was nicknamed “Killer’ by Temptation in reference to his proficiency in writing Zimdancehall lyrics and singing while the T was taken from the brother’s initial. “Killing” is doing anything to perfection in street lingo.

Kelvin attended St Peters Primary school and later George Starks for his secondary education. The young musician loved reggae music but never dreamt of becoming a musician. At one point he worked as a tout and rank marshal for commuter omnibuses plying the City-Mbare route, something that he sings about in his songs.

One day he posted a video free styling ‘Enchanted’ and it went viral. After realising his video was gaining traction he decided to embrace music as a career option. His breakthrough came in 2013 when he released ‘Makarova gunners,’ a hit single which marked his rise to fame. It was around that time when he adopted his signature slogan “popopo” which became popular among ghetto youths in the country.

Killer T’s chant was inspired by the killing of Mbare’s “robber with style” the notorious Boris Mushonga, who died in a horrific car crash at Zindoga Shopping Centre in mid-October 2013.

Police arrested several suspected robbers after firing gunshots during Mushonga’s colourful funeral parade in Mbare. Residents were excited and narrated to friends how the police had fired shots. It is this incident that Killer T immortalised in his works through the chant “popopo”.

“My past is still influencing some of the songs I am still writing today. It is also my background which taught me to be independent and hardworking such that I can look after myself,” he said.

Killer T is among the few Zim dancehall artistes who have remained humble despite their growing fame. His songs have clean lyrics accompanied by equally clean videos. The musician sings in simple Shona language and avoids patois in rare instances when he switches to English songs.

Killer T refuses to be identified as a Zimdanchall artiste, preferring to be known as a musician, instead.

In February 2014 the artist got a one year endorsement deal with Chicken Inn which involved featuring in some of their radio and television commercials. Later in the same year Killer T was to make his maiden trip abroad. He made his first International appearance at the Zimbabwe Cup Clash at Dunstable Leisure Centre in UK. His official rise to zenith was marked by winning the ‘Best Upcoming Male Artist’ award in 2014.

In 2015 the artist released arguably his best album to date, ‘Ngoma ndaimba’ which featured the fan favourites, Takuda kumbofarawo. He then adopted a new signature line, “Hot Property” and gained the nickname Mr Hot Property which also became the label of his recording company.

Killer T has a very rich discography that features more than 150 singles and a number of albums. Among his hits are songs with a gospel tip like Nditungamirire, Munamato and Munditungamirire, and pro-traditional songs like Rovai Makuva. In 2016 the musician finally received due recognition in the form of awards. Killer T took home four prestigious awards at the Zimdancehall Awards that included, ‘Best Male Artist’, Album of the year for his best seller album, Ngoma Ndaimba, Best social message for the song ‘Chikorobho’ and was also nominated for song of the year for his hit track, Toda Kumbofarawo.

All his sings carry a serious message for the youth and elderly alike. They don’t call Killer T the Chairman for nothing.