Cde Chinx

Dickson Chingaira Makoni was a revolutionary musician and songwriter from Zimbabwe who was popularly known by his fans as Comrade (or Cde) Chinx. Chinx is short for Chingaira. He was born on 27 September 1955 in Rusape and died on 18 June 2017. He rose to fame with songs such as ‘Africa’, ‘Hondo Yeminda’ and ‘Mabhunu’.

He attended Chigora Primary School in the Makoni District of Rusape. His passion for music started when he was in primary school. His headmaster, Martin Dhlamini, advised him to sing and to join the school choir. Upon completing his secondary school, he got a place to study medicine overseas. Efforts to acquire travel documents hit a snag and he ended up working at an engineering plant in Msasa, Harare.

In 1975, he joined the Second Chimurenga war in Mozambique. His love for music prompted him to become a full-time organiser of the Zimbabwe African National Union Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) People’s Choir. They established choir called Takawira. This was in honour of the late nationalist Leopold Takawira. The choir heightened morale of freedom fighters during war. Chinx had joined the guerrillas with the objective of liberating Zimbabwe but later became the leader of the Takawira choir. The choir later changed its name to the Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army (ZANLA) Choir.

In 1980, after the country’s independence, he returned home. He teamed up with Bennie Miller and Keith Farquharson to record his chimurenga songs ‘Ngorimba’, ‘Zvikomborero’ and ‘Nerudo’. They formed a group called Ilanga. The group recorded more songs between 1982 and 1987. The group disbanded and he went solo. In 1996, he featured in a film titled ‘Flame’.

His songs continue to enjoy airplay during Independence Day celebrations and Africa day holidays. In 2000 when the land reform started, he and the late Andy Brown composed and recorded songs for the government. The twosome was backed by the Police Band. In 2005, his song ‘Vanhu Vese VemuAfrica’ won the Silver Jubilee Award for the Most Inspiring Song of the Liberation War at the 2005 National Arts Merit Awards. In October 2014, he was accorded the chairman’s award, which came with a four-bedroomed house in Harare’s leafy Mabelreign suburb at the Zimbabwe Music Awards (Zima).