Bozeman Magazine

After leaving university to pursue a musical career, Peter Mawanga began creating definitive music, globally recognized yet intrinsically Malawian. In 2005 he recorded Zanga Zo Zama, a critically acclaimed album, presenting Mawanga’s truer sound – a fusion of traditional African rhythms, composition and vocal arrangements with modern instrumentalities. This album was known for its strong messages marking Peter’s journey from pop star to celebrated musician and voice of the underprivileged.

With the support from Unicef and Plan International, Peter trained and mentored orphaned and venerable children by organizing music workshops. Inspired to continue creating music with young people, Peter formed his own band. Incorporating Malawian instrumentation and singing in Chichewa (Malawian national language), Peter is able to communicated both musically and lyrically to the world on behalf of his country. He composes when he is at peace and in sync with the world and therefore the result is intimate and unrestrained. Peter Mawanga has garnered respect in the music industry at large and now invests most of his time in a research tour across Malawi, recording and rediscovering the NYANJA sounds of Malawi (Music from the lake shores of Malawi).

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