rina mushonga’s afro-electro delivers

Catharsis is not an easy feeling to describe, but if there is a sound that came close to reproducing that feeling, it has to be the inspired merging of Afrobeats and Indie-electro by Dutch-Zimbabwean singer/songwriter Rina Mushonga. The singer draws inspiration from her upbringing in Harare, as well as her time living in Amsterdam and Peckham, South London, where she currently resides. Mushonga’s broad range of influences includes Greek mythology and literature, which she incorporates in her music to create a distinct sound that also serves as a device for working through the “rootlessness” attached to a blended heritage.

“My life always felt very cross-pollinated, but being half European and half African sometimes I felt I was asked to choose which I identified with the most—like I had to pick a side. It was pretty excruciating—especially as within my family unit it was never about that—one or the other—my Dad always called us global citizens, with pride. We belonged everywhere. I loved that, I identified with that—I didn’t have to choose… My music doesn’t have to choose to express anything but myself—a little bit of this, a little bit of that—and it’s that mix of genres that best represents me, how I see things and experience the world and consequently how I express myself.”

Mushonga’s latest single, “4qrtrs,” feels how color sounds, incorporating the natural soundtrack of Peckham with African percussion transformed by a catchy electro-pop beat which turns the entire song into the feeling of taking your hands off the bicycle handlebars during an exhilarating downhill ride. “4qrtrs” captures and elevates the vibrancy found in Afrobeats and in Electro, transforming and combining each into a whimsical and personal musical tribute to a journey that induces a warm sense of nostalgia with every listen.

“‘4qrtrs’ has been prodded, poked and teased into existence. Parts of it belonged to my old, discarded songs, other bits and pieces I wrote more recently. It’s become this weird collage or map of where I’ve been, emotionally and geographically. ”

“4qrtrs” feels like a sonic embodiment of Mushonga’s stylistic independence. A celebration of a sound and feel she can confidently call her own.