Paper short abstract:

This paper is about youth and politics in urban Zimbabwe with a focus on Mbare township and the popular musical genre Zimdancehall. It will situate Zimdancehall in the longer history of music and nationalist politics in Zimbabwe, asking to what extent it represents a form of co-optation or resistance.

Paper long abstract:

Harare's oldest township, Mbare has long been the hub of a vibrant popular music and dance scene. Since the mid-2000s, Harare has seen the growth of Zimdancehall, a distinctive local style of music, with roots in Jamaican reggae and dancehall, and lyrics in Shona and English. Zimdancehall producers and artists largely originate from Mbare and the poorer suburbs of Harare. Some argue that Zimdancehall provides a voice to those that endure poverty and isolation from the mainstream; while critics associate Zimdancehall with drugs and violence. Previous forms of popular music, such as chimurenga and 'urban grooves' came to enjoy a close relationship with the state (Willems, 2015). Zimdancehall has also become popular among Zimbabwean political elites. Major artists have performed at state-sponsored events, such as Grace Mugabe's birthday party in Borrowdale in July 2015. This paper situates Zimdancehall within a longer history of music and nationalist politics in Zimbabwe. Based on empirical research in Harare in 2015, and analysis of songs, newspaper reports, and oral testimony, this paper asks to what extent Zimdancehall represents a form of co-optation or resistance. Can we consider Zimdancehall as a vehicle for youth engagement in urban politics? And what does this popular musical genre tell us about political subjectivities among youth in urban Zimbabwe?