Zambians mourn gospel singer popular in churches and clubs

Some of Zambia’s top musicians held a concert in the capital Lusaka to mourn 46-year-old gospel singer Matthew Ngosa, a day before he was to be buried.

Audience members sang along to his favorite songs at the Praise Christian Center.

Some of his songs were so popular that during his more than twenty years of performing career, they were played not only in churches but also in nightclubs.

The funeral in Lusaka was packed with fans, friends, family and government officials, led by his brother Boyd, also a musician known by his stage name BJ.

Matthew began singing with BJ and his brother Hezron in high school, often a cappella.

They knew they wanted to make a career out of music, but that wasn’t easy in a country where rampant piracy meant most musicians couldn’t make much money from their music.

Matthew and Hezron formed a duo called the “Ishmael Brothers,” who were part of a larger group, the “Tribe of Christians.”

Later, at the North Meadows Assembly of God Church in Lusaka, Matthew joined the Christ Ambassadors Choir where he honed his singing skills.

In 2004, he released his debut album, Umutima Wandi (My Heart), which became a huge success and topped the music charts.

This was followed by gospel hits including Ukulolela (Wait) and Ndakunkula (Praise and Pray to God), both of which became anthems for nightclub revellers.

Matthew Ngosa never became rich, but he was able to make a decent living from his hit songs before he was diagnosed with liver cancer in January.

He died two days before he was due to return to India for a checkup.

Hezron told the BBC he would miss his brother’s sense of humour: “He would do whatever he could to make people happy. Even when he was sick he was very strong. He was a man of faith.”

Gospel musician Kings Mumbi also echoed the generosity of spirit.

“For me, he’s a mentor. When I recorded my first song, I gave it to him for critique and that’s why I never went astray. He’s more than just a brother to me,” he told the BBC.

“When a pastor invited Matthew Ngosa to sing at their church but couldn’t pay him, he didn’t bother the pastor because for Matthew, singing was part of his missionary work. He saw it as a way to spread the word of God.”

The development of the Zambian music industry may be plagued by piracy, but most Christians prefer to buy genuine albums directly from musicians to promote gospel music.

Others believe that buying pirated gospel music is a sin and tantamount to stealing.

“Your untimely death has devastated me, broken the hearts of believers and shocked the entire country,” televangelist and former Vice President Nevers Mumba wrote on Facebook after Ngoza’s death was announced on Friday.

“My only consolation is that I know you will announce your arrival to heaven from Zambia in grand style. I can almost hear you singing with all the force your vocal cords can muster as you walk through those golden doors.”

His words reflected the grief felt by people in Zambia, a predominantly Christian country with well-attended churches, for Ngosa.

President Hakainde Hichilema expressed his condolences to the family of the deceased, while former President Edgar Lungu also visited the funeral home on Saturday.

Ngosa, who has two daughters with Tarsila Ngombe, served as a civic leader for Mr Lungu’s Patriotic Front party.

BJ told the BBC that their mother, Samaria Maswela, was crucial to the careers of all three Ngoza brothers.

“She used to sing in church and her own parents used to sing. When we were children, my mother took us to Sunday school in the United Church of Zambia (UCZ) to learn music.”

At the end of the three-hour concert on Sunday, she took the stage with other tearful family members to sing Matthew’s classic song “Umutima Wandi” — a hymn in the Bemba language thanking God for the blessing of life.