Sungura legend Nicholas Zakaria is celebrating 65 years of age today and 46 years in the music industry.
Nicholas popularly referred to as Senior Lecturer is credited as being the man behind the nurturing of musicians such as Alick Macheso and System Tazvida.
He is also known as Madzibaba based on his apostolic beliefs and his hairstyle and long beard.
Zakaria was born in 1956 in Mazowe to Maluva Chekani who moved from Malawi to settle in Zimbabwe then Rhodesia in 1947.
He met his wife Margaret Gweshe, who was a dancer within Khiama Boys. They were to be blessed with two children, Rudo and Simba. Sadly Simba committed suicide in 2008 at the family’s Chiweshe homestead, after battling illness for some time.
Over the years Zacharia has been nicknamed Madzibaba because he was a member of Mugodhi apostolic sect, he however joined Walter Magaya’s Prophetic Healing and Deliverance (PHD) ministries in 2014.
Nicholas’ father, Maluva Chekani, was a musician and it was because of him that his Nicholas became one. By the age of eight, Zacharia could already play the guitar. And by the age of 14 he had formed his own band, The Green Mangoes. Against this background, he decided not to sit for his ‘O’ Level exams.
As the passion for music grew, Zacharia left his place of birth Mazowe for Harare, initially settling in Dzivaresekwa, where he soon found himself in the company of musicians in such as Shepherd Chinyani. Together they formed Vhuka Boys, just before independence.
After that Khiama Boys of the Mabhauwa fame was formed and consisted of the late Tineyi Chikupo, Alick Macheso, the late System Tazvida, the late Cephas Karushanga and Donald Gogo.
