By Anoziva Marindire & Thelmah Chandafira

Southern Africa has witnessed the rise of Hip-Hop music in the past decade, with many young African youth finding Hip hop as an outlet to express what they see around them.

Zimbabwe has not been left out and has produced its own fair share of talent to the African Hip-hop stage. The Shoko festival has become a debut platform for emerging hip-hop artistes and this year was no exception.

The just ended festival introduced a new group, Nu Alliance, to the international Hip-Hop scene and News of the South (NOTS) caught up with the crazy duo (LivesoUl and Lesco) that makes up the group, for an exclusive interview.

NOTS: Please tell us who is Nu Alliance and how did the name come about?

LivesoUl: Nu Alliance is collaboration between emcee/poet LivesoUl and vocalist/songwriter Lesco. The name Nu Alliance came out of Lesco’s mouth during a freestyle session and it just stuck.

Lesco: It came up as freestyle then we sort of liked the vibe it had. The name represents a union of two powerful unique individuals, LivesUl brought the hip-hop and Lesco brought in the soul and reggae.

NOTS: So what inspired you to follow hip-hop?
LivesoUl: I would say in the beginning it was the coolness of the art form…..but word play has been with me since childhood.

Lesco: LivesoUl inspired me into hip-hop and urban culture.

NOTS: Great, that being said what do you think of hip hop music/culture in Zimbabwe?

LivesoUl: Zim Hip hop is still becoming…….

Lesco: Hip hop is still growing, and it has become more interesting and challenging this past decade.

LivesoUl: It still has the rawness which keeps the art form alive.

NOTS: What are some of the challenges that Zim Hip hop is facing currently?

LivesoUl: The challenges in Zim Hip hop are not just exclusive to Zimbabwe…
NOTS: Tell us about them…..

LivesoUl: It’s more like if you study the history of Hip hop worldwide you will find that the main struggle has always been acceptance, as an art form which can be respected but that’s what makes it strong as well.

NOTS: How have you managed to stand out against such odds?

Lesco: It is more about being yourself and expressing your mind…

LivesoUl: Real Hip hop gives you the courage to find yourself and to learn to express yourself. The passion has kept us going and the support we get from other Hip hoppers gives us the energy to keep on.
NOTS: When did you guys form Nu Alliance?

LivesoUl: Nu Alliance came into being in 2010 as an experiment.

NOTS: An experiment on what?

Lesco: To see if Zim Hip hop could be fused with other genres of music like reggae and so far the fusion is working well.

NOTS: What does Hip hop mean to you? And Lesco being more of a vocalist and having a reggae background did you struggle with finding your place in Hip hop?

LivesoUl: Hip hop is a divine culture, a way of life; it’s an attitude, its awareness….

Lesco: I did not struggle mainly because I had the assistance of my man LivesoUl. Being a songwriter and into soul it really was not difficult to blend.

NOTS: Are you guys signed to any stable?

LivesoUl: As a group NO, but Lesco is signed with a local stable.

Lesco: I am signed to Legacy Records….

NOTS: Why is Nu Alliance not signed to a recording stable?

LivesoUl: We intend to stay independent and more in control of our music.

NOTS: You have come to be known as quite a socially conscious duo. What is it that raised your consciousness and how does it feed into your music?

LivesoUl: Growing up in Chi-town, I guess one grows up socially conscious. We grew up listening to Bob Marley, groups like Dead prez, Mau Mau, Synik and a lot of positive minded artistes and it raised that awareness and hanging around poets also causes one to think deeper…….(laughs).

NOTS: there is a lot of black consciousness talk in your music, how has the works of Malcolm X, Marcus Garvey, and Nkwame Nkrumah etc. influenced your music as young black Africans.

Lesco: Coming from a reggae background, I grew up listening to a lot music that dwelt on black consciousness influenced by the works of Malcolm, Marcus and those guys that were a part of that great black movement, hence my writing has a lot of that too.

LivesoUl: I always found reading somehow liberating and my intellectual diet was more of black literature, so it turns out I express some of those thoughts.

NOTS: Do you think that Hip hop artiste can contribute to social change?

LivesoUl: I was changed by the positive message I was exposed to through Hip hop, so if I was, then I believe society as well can be affected to social change by Hip hop too, just look at the work that Russell Simons is doing to help youth across the world and you will see it is possible.

NOTS: On a lighter note, what languages do you rap/sing in?
LivesoUl: we make music in Shona and English but mostly chirungu (English)….colonialism (laughs)

Lesco: But we are perfecting our Shona writing skills and getting better each day.

NOTS: You performed at the just ended Shoko Festival, how was the experience?

LivesoUl: It was the biggest performance in our career thus far and the experience was positive but of course you cannot please everyone.

NOTS: Any new projects you are working on?

LivesoUl: We are working on collaboration with a group from the States called Nu Alliance West…..

NOTS: Besides music, do you guys have other projects keeping you busy?

LivesoUl: I am on a 5 to 9 hustle, and also doing journalism and graphic designing.

Lesco: I am into wood carving, I make sticks with designs that tell my stories and around with beads and miti (trees)……… (Laughs)

NOTS: Do you have any message to the youths of Africa?

Lesco: If we all believe and adopt a positive mindset towards what we do, surely we can build a better Africa.

LivesoUL: Afrika is the future, believe in what God gave and always cherish the oneness of human kind.

NOTS: Thank you gentleman for your time…

Nu Alliance: No thank you guys for this and Jah bless!

2

Comments

comments