WERE, comes from the word ‘mawere’ meaning ascending – a mountain or in life. They are an energetic 5 member Zimbabwean band from Harare.
They play an intoxicating fusion of tribal and contemporary African music, which always engages the audience. The band blends modern and traditional instruments, using the mbira and kudu horn, paired with tearing vocals from their powerful lead vocalists, to create an energetic stage performance.
WERE was originally comprised of three young male musicians who started playing together in 2011 at a local church in their hometown in Chitungwiza (Harare), home to a large number of leading Zimbabwean musicians. They later met their additional members, two female vocalists, through Music Crossroads in 2013 and the rest was history.
These Zimbabwean dynamos use the mbira, a traditional African musical instrument, as a base for composing all of their songs. The female vocalists also incorporate a variety of percussion instruments such as the congas, kudu horn and ‘hosho’ into their performances that are deeply rooted into the traditional Zimbabwean sounds. WERE specializes in several traditional dances as well as urban styles common to Harare.
When the band hits the stage, the audience is always drawn to their feet and wont sit down until the very last note.
In 2013 WERE won the Imagine International Final in Kristiansand Norway, where they were awarded an Imagine Tour organised by JMI. Their raw combination of contemporary and traditional Zimbabwean music style blew the crowd and the judges away, earning them an Imagine tour in 2014.
