Hechichamunorwa Mount Zion Kwenda (23 June 1976 – 4 September 2014), better known as Mizchif, was a South African based

Zimbabwean Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Moza ...

rapper Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

. He was allegedly 'the first to independently release a solo hip hop album in South Africa,' and the first person in South Africa to perform hip hop with a live band.

Early Background

Mizchif was born and raised in Highfield,

Harare Harare (; formerly Salisbury ) is the capital and most populous city of Zimbabwe. The city proper has an area of 940 km2 (371 mi2) and a population of 2.12 million in the 2012 census and an estimated 3.12 million in its metropolitan ...

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...

. He moved to

Syracuse, New York Syracuse ( ) is a City (New York), city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, Onondaga County, New York, United States. It is the fifth-most populous city in the state of New York following New York City, Buffalo, New York, Buffa ...

at the age of 12 where he hooked up with a crew, Soul Pack, and began rapping. He moved to

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

at 18, where he released his debut album ''Life from All Angles'' in 1999 on Eargasm Records. It was well received and had classics like "Place for a Wife" and "Fashionable," of which both respective music videos received constant airplay on several TV music channels across Africa. Mizchif presented hip hop news on

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...

radio station

YFM YFM (99.2 FM) is a "Youth" radio station in Johannesburg, South Africa. Established in 1997, the station is formatted to mostly play urban music genres such as Kwaito, Hip Hop, and R&B along with a minority of its airtime being dedicated to ...

. He was also a

video jockey A video jockey (abbreviated VJ or sometimes veejay) is an announcer or host who introduces music videos and live performances on commercial music television channels such as MTV, VH1, Much (TV channel), MuchMusic and Channel V. Origins The term " ...

on ''Nasty'', a hip hop show on

MNET M-Net (an abbreviation of Electronic Media Network) is a South African pay television channel established by Naspers in 1986. The channel broadcasts both local and international programming, including general entertainment, children's series, ...

music channel, Channel O. In 2001 Mizchif teamed up with Mavusana from

kwaito Kwaito is a music genre that emerged in Soweto, Johannesburg, South Africa, during the 1990s. It is a variant of house music that features the use of African sounds and samples. Kwaito songs occur at a slower tempo range than other styles of h ...

group Oda Meeste, for the album ''Summertime'' on

Ghetto Ruff GHETTO RUFF is an independent South African recording label specializing in kwaito, hip hop, soul, house, gospel and rhythm and blues. Having been formed around the need to have a voice against apartheid GR released Prophets of da City who had tr ...

records which had the infectious hit "Summertime". His album ''Supernatural (My Return)'', was released in September 2003 and nominated for the Best Hip Hop Album at the 2003

South African Music Awards The South African Music Awards (often simply the SAMAs) are the Recording Industry of South Africa's music industry awards, established in 1995. The ceremony is held annually, usually in late April or May, with the judging process starting in N ...

Death

On 4 September 2014, Mizchif died due to ill health. He was 38. His funeral was held on 8 September 2014 in his hometown in Greendale, Harare, Zimbabwe at the Warren Hills cemetery.

Discography

Singles

*"Fashionable" (1999) *"Place for a Wife featuring TK" (1999) *"Summertime feat Mavusana" (2001) *"Ngiyazwa" (2001) *"Wonderful World" (2003)

Albums

*''Life from All Angles'' (1999) *''Mavusana meets Mizchif (Summertime)'' (2001) *''Supernatural (My Return)'' (2003)

References

External links

Hiphop South Africa

Zimbabwe Urban Culture

The home of African hip-hop culture on the web. 15 years online.

YFM
1976 births 2014 deaths Zimbabwean rappers People from Harare Zimbabwean emigrants to South Africa {{hiphop-bio-stub