Our music will take us far, says Chris Million Mas...

Our music will take us far, says Chris Million Masocha

Zim Now Writer

Around 1992, the band Zambuko, led by the late Paul Mpofu, released the hit Murambinda, a song that was a favourite with many, being played in many clubs and vehicles back then.

Mpofu had a lasting influence on Chris Million Masocha, a rising Zimbabwean musician who says the jiti musician has been his local idol for a very long time.

“We used to follow Baba Paul Mpofu wherever he was playing, especially when I moved to Harare from Mhondoro. We would dance outside the venues he played in until he was told about this. He eventually let us in. That is how it all began,” reminisces Million, whose music is taking root in Zimbabwe and released his third album Naiwa Uchifamba recently.

When Mpofu and Zambuko released Murambinda, Chris Masocha, whose stage name is Chris Million, had been born over a decade earlier in Mubaira, Mhondoro, in Mashonaland West Province.

Million was born on 13 April, 1980, exactly three days before Zimbabwe officially got its independence from Britain, bringing down the Union Jack and replacing it with the current Zimbabwe flag.

Million attended Kawara Primary School in Mubaira, Mhondoro from Grade One to Seven.

He then proceeded to Beatrice High School for his secondary education but was to remain only until he was in Form Three. He completed his secondary education at Seke 4 High School before joining Speciss College, where he graduated with a Certificate in Building Trades.

The Paul Mpofu influence was already in him then. Million says The Muddy Face Band, later fronted by the late Cephas Mashakada, who used to play at Majoni Hotel in Mhondoro every Christmas Day, left an indelible mark on him.

“I admired everything that they used to do, especially Mpofu, who later went on to lead the jiti group Zambuko, producing the chart-topping hits Murambinda and Ndakuvara Musoro. Even today, I just feel someone out there could just come out and revive Mpofu’s legacy. I would be very happy,” said Million.

The upcoming singer said he liked music from an early age but there was no one around him who could teach him.

“It took me very long to really get into it because of lack of exposure since I happen to be a reserved individual who likes living by himself. It was only when I was already in South Africa that I really started writing songs,” said Million, who said getting into music was a way of fulfilling a wish that was growing within him.

“Today, when I look at what is on the ground, music is a professional career I may pursue going forward, from the way things are going right now,” he said.

It was one day when he met with a group called Zim Select while celebrating his birthday while the group was performing at Welcome Club in Chitungwiza.

“I was taken aside by Patrick Mpala who asked me if I had any written music. I told him that I had many written songs. I even went on stage and performed some of them,” added the musician.

Later, Million says, he started working on a demo with Mpala. The Zim Select group saw he was talented and started rehearsing with him.

“This led to their first album Muri Huchi in 2017.

Million says he can play many genres, especially those where instruments are played. “I am at home with all genres, except maybe for hip hop. I am a unique singer, who has no specific genre although I am more into sungura,” he told Zim Now.

Million then recorded Tanha Dzaunosvikira (2019). “The album did not do very well because of the quality because we did it in pieces. It was recorded the hard way.

“Chasatani Hachidyiwe Mahara came afterwards during the Covid-19 era and again there were challenges with the vocals. They were not very good.

“Naiwa Uchifamba is very different. The sound is in order. In between the two albums, we had done a single titled Kufira Nzungu Segonzo which makes the seventh track on Naiwa Uchifamba. We are planning to release the single Mhanduwe Musadaro on February 14, Valentines’ Day. We would want to look at the other side of love because we normally sweep these issues, such as diseases and infidelity that come with marriages and relationships, under the carpet,” said Million.

“The song is about people’s day-to-day lives in love and relationships. The Baba and Mai Denzel issues that took social media into a frenzy yesterday (Tuesday). These things happen somewhere, every day,” Million told Zim Now.

Although he is an Information Technology person, Million says he is a street hustler, with shops that sell computers and accessories as well as salons, in Port Elizabeth. However, his mind is on music and feels he will go far.

“I have a lot in store. In three years' time, music should take us far, including taking our music to other countries in the region and beyond,” Million said.