Netsayi

Born in exile as the daughter of Southern Rhodesian parents who had fled their homeland for London, singer-songwriter Netsayi grew up alongside two siblings in Camden under her mother’s care. Her father remained far away in Mozambique and Zambia, where he contributed to guerrilla camps advancing his people’s struggle for liberation. In 1980, when she turned seven, Netsayi returned with her family to the newly independent nation of Zimbabwe, formerly known as Southern Rhodesia. There she encountered a rich array of sounds—Congolese kwasa, South African jazz, Zimbabwean jit and mbira, American R&B, and the emerging roots of hip-hop—that infused every setting from church services and household gatherings to public festivities, anchoring her amid surrounding upheaval. Throughout high school she composed and performed regularly, later pursuing studies in film production before redirecting her focus entirely to music. By 2001 she was performing on the United Kingdom’s acoustic circuit and soon earned bookings at major venues such as the Royal Albert Hall and Queen Elizabeth Hall. In 2004 she founded her own imprint, Militant Prince, and issued the single “Tatters,” which gained widespread underground attention across the country. Two years later she entered a partnership with World Connection and delivered her first album, Chimurenga Soul.