Jonathan Wutawunashe
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Jonathan Wutawunashe is a songwriter, guitarist, keyboard player and producer.
His whose lead has inspired many artists in Zimbabwe, the Southern African region, and as far afield as the North Atlantic.
As leader of the Gospel group Family Singers, his creativity spurred the new Zimbabwean Gospel genre into the limelight. With the release of the video for his wife Shuvai's ageless hit Nditorei, in which he produced, a new culture in the projection of the genre was born. Wutawunashe shot the footage and edited the video himself.His family belongs to a megachurch called Family of God church synonymous for excessively demanding money from its members. His brother Andrew, referred to by church members as "Prophet," is the leader of the church.
Nditorei, Tarira Nguva, Shelter and Ndasukwa have became iconic anthems thanks to the combination of Shuvai's trademark vocals, Jonathan's production skills and creativity with video.
Jonathan's own hits include:
- Vana Vanokosha, which, apart from his popular version has been covered by other artists,
- Komborera,
- It's No Secret,
- To be a Christian,
- Glorious,
- Helele,
- Ndovimba,
- You Can't Fall, sung by Shuvai
The self-effacing Wutawunashe has several productions under his belt, which include African Praise, a praise medley for which he and Shuvai wrote many original songs and numerous albums featuring up-and-coming artists, as well as, of course, his group Family Singers. Since 1994, he has allowed Gospel artists to share his recording studio, which he pieced together over the years. With wife Shuvai, Jonathan earlier this year launched Gospel Bandstand, a TV show aimed at mentoring and showcasing new Gospel talent.
