Lawi reflects on life in 30s, releases Galimoto
South Africa-based Afro jazz musician Lawi, real name Francis Phiri, has released a new single “Galimoto” ahead of his upcoming album titled “Thirties” scheduled to drop later this year.
Lawi known in Malawi’s contemporary music world as a young artist, in his 30s who has come with a unique brand of music and is managing to promote his unique genre and market himself to the world in a way that few artists in the country have done before, hence the album is a journey of reflections on his life thus far.
Meanwhile, the Amaona Kuchedwa hit maker’s new single depicts the embarrassment that comes when husbands ignore their wives needs.
The self produced track, “Galimoto” is a Jazzy conversational song, a dialogue between wife and her well to do husband.
In the song, the wife is asking her husband to buy her a car and save her from embarrassment. The chorus goes, “Galimoto, Galimoto/ Ndidziti mkati break khwee, miseche nayo balala/ Galimoto, Galimoto, mundigulire ine Galimoto“.
In the first verse, the wife bemoans, “Ndimayenda ine wapansi ine eeh eeh, minga zimandibaya ine eeh eeh/ Anthu akandiona ine eeh eeh, amayamba kuseka ine eeh eeh/ Kuti dona ya bwana iyo, si iyo?, yabayika ndi minga si iyo? Iyo, ngati makobidi kulibe kwaoko, si iyo?/ ndalema ndi chitonzo mundigulileko”
“Galimoto” theme comes at an interesting time when feminists are advocating for women independence, challenging the husband is head of family narrative.
Lawi came in the limelight in early 2000s with hits such as “High Morale”, “Amenyele” around the time when Hip Hop was making headway.
He later switched to Afro Jazz producing hit songs such as “Amaona Kuchedwa”.
Lawi’s last album was “Sunset in the Sky” released in December, 2017.
