Neria [Original Soundtrack]

“Neria’’ was originally recorded for the soundtrack of the 1991 film by the same name, which became a global hit and remains one of Zimbabwe’s biggest films. It tells the story of Neria, a widow who loses everything because of the country’s inheritance laws. The soundtrack is a work of biting social commentary, criticizing the challenges faced by Zimbabwean widows and examining the clash between Shona traditions and a changing society. Mtukudzi was rarely overtly political — unlike his fellow Zimbabwean musician Thomas Mapfumo, who lived in self-imposed exile for almost two decades — but he didn’t shy away from confronting the country’s social issues, from HIV-AIDS to homelessness and gender inequality. A new version of single “Neria’’, rerecorded with Ladysmith Black Mambazo, was released only a year before Mtukudzi’s death in 2019: an incredibly stirring, powerful rendition of one of  Mtukudzi’s most timeless songs.