Mix The City Harare | British Council

We invited the world to discover the sights and sounds of Zimbabwe with Mix TheCity Harare. Zimbabwe’s musicians were recorded and journeyed through iconic landmarks in the city of Harare.

UK music producer Oli Bayston, better known as Boxed In, joined up with the British Council for this project where he travelled to Zimbabwe to record 12 local musicians. You can meet them all, hear their music from their sounds. You’ll discover the late Dr Oliver Mtukudzi, legendary co-founder of the regional band ‘Mahube’ who was passionately known by his many fans as Tuku; the late polyrhythmic percussionist Douglas Vambe, famous for the drum beat that has announced national news bulletins since 1962; dancehall artist Soul Jah Love; Afro-beat superstars Jah Prayzah and Ammara Brown; Josh Meck, one of Zimbabwe's most high profile Afro-jazz musicians; DJ Ray Dizz who has showcased his work at Ministry of Sound (London), Harare International Festival of the Arts and DJ Mag (Las Vegas); and Othnell ‘Mangoma’ Moyo, an ethnomusicologist and craftsman who builds the majority of the instruments he uses. Also featured are the ever energetic Blessing Chimanga, DJ Smyliy, the Prince Edward School and the renowned apostolic choral group Vabati va Jehova.

The musicians were recorded in iconic locations across the city including the Lion and Cheetah Park, the National Art Gallery of Zimbabwe, Harare International Airport, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, Joina City Mall – the biggest shopping mall in Zimbabwe – Kuimba Shiri Bird Sanctuary, JP Studios, Prince Edward School Chapel, the colourful Mbare Flats, Julius Nyerere Footbridge and the legendary Dr Oliver Mtukudzi’s Pakare Paye Arts Centre

Launched in April 2015, Mix The City Tel Aviv – partly funded by The Space and the BBC – led to a further nine incarnations of Mix The City globally, but this was the first of its kind in the whole of Africa.

Mix the City Harare was been partly funded by Econet Wireless and supported by Zimbabwean Ministry of Tourism and Hospitality Industry and Harare International Festival of the Arts.

Arts are a cornerstone of the British Council's mission to create a friendly knowledge and understanding between the people of the UK and the wider world. Partnerships between artists, institutions and organisations such as Mix the City Harare are at the heart of our programme in Sub-Saharan Africa which aims to develop skills and capacity across the creative industries and celebrate their achievements. Last month the British Council launched the Selector in Zimbabwe on Capitalk FM. The Selector is an award-winning radio show that covers all styles of music from indie, dubstep, folk, soul, electro and everything in between. The show features interviews, mixes and exclusive live sessions from some of the most exciting British artists and is broadcast in over 40 countries. Each week DJ and presenter Goldierocks brings us the brilliance and diversity of British music, promoting the sounds, talents and musical culture of modern Britain to an international audience.