Over it's 2 compilations (so far), Zazise's Storytellers Of The Culture has become a cultural moment that demands the attention of every Zimbabwean hip hop head. While each album is an overall work of brilliance, VOTY (Verse Of The Year) is the exclamation point that has been one of the defining elements of each project. On VOTY 2 a relatively unknown Benefit Tanaka breathed out soliloquies while raving about his enunciation and telling the world he might be the new Takura.
Grandiose pronouncements for a rapper who had only just released his debut album. Yet just over a year later, with two more albums to his name, Benefit Tanaka's confident swagger seems a lot more rooted in realism.
A storyteller with a knack for interpolation, the rapper's Valentine's Day release, PANA MWINGA, is an ode to love that channels the personal to create the memorable.
While love is a subject that has been crisscrossed by artists of different genres countless times, Benefit Tanaka brings an honesty and vulnerability to it that grabs attention: "Musi uno ndakakunyorera tsamba, misodzi pamatama/Murume mukuru, zihoromba richizhamba," the rapper intones on the opener, "Pretending."
Reflections on the past are a catalyst for realisations of the present, and those realisations shape the dreams Benefit has of the future. Propelling this intentional storytelling is a production (achieved by Benefit's key collaborator Phoenix Beats, with a helping hand from Calvinmadeit & The Curator) rife with RnB sensibilities. Soulful grooves and syncopation are the rock bed Benefit Tanaka cuts across with his unique cadence.
The album is dedicated to Pana Mwinga, a subject Benefit constantly refers to throughout as P or Panashe. In expressing his current emotions towards her, Benefit reveals a messy past riddled with mistakes, regret and thoughts of what could've been.
While SHAKESPEARE oscilated between the dark ("Robin") and the more light hearted ("Paidamoyo"), PANA MWINGA finds itself on a middle ground between these two. A constant, however, across these two albums and BENEFIT FRED before, is Benefit Tanaka's use of pop culture references in storytelling. On PANA MWINGA it's both in the song titles "Miss Katniss Everdeen" (from the film franchise The Hunger Games), "I Met Your Mother" (from the popular sitcom How I Met Your Mother) and in lyrics like "Ndomurwira kunge John Cena" on the track "Nyisa."
The album also sees the rapper interpolating two Zimbabwean classics: Admire Kasega & Ngosimbi Crew's "Pamuchato WaTobias" on "Wepamoyo" and David Chifunyise's "Tauya Naye" on "Nyisa." A homage to artists of the past that is becoming a signature of his work (Oliver Mtukudzi on his SHAKESPEARE album).
In addition to the subject of love, "Ndipeiwo" sees the rapper comparing himself to ancient philosopher Plato as he makes a plea for strength to the Lord. PANA MWINGA sees Benefit Tanaka having his head in the clouds while remaining grounded. He believes in a forever after but his heart has known chaos and those dreams of eternity may just be another short lived chapter.
Greedysouth rating: 7.4/10
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