Iconic musician Giddes Chalamanda finally saw his dream come true when he performed at the Library of Congress in Washington DC on Wednesday night as part of his Giddes Coming to America Tour.
The 84-year-old musician was joined on stage by guitarist Anko Lai, singer Chimwemwe Maloya and long time collaborators and benefactors, acoustic duo Edgar ndi Davis.
According to a statement on the Library of Congress’ Facebook page, Malawi’s Ambassador to the United States of America Necton Mhura worked with the Chief of the Library’s African and Middle Eastern Division to schedule and record Giddes’ performance.
“Lawyers/musicians Edgar ndi Davis, who also performed, were instrumental in putting this US visit together and helping Mr. Chalamanda to realise a life-long dream,” said the statement.
On his part, Davis Njobvu said Giddes had a wonderful experience in Washington and they were set for Saturday’s performance in Indiana.
“A lot of Malawians flew in from different states just to come and see Giddes because he’s an icon. And he had a fun and classic performance in Washington. And Indiana is also promising a lot thrills,” he said.
The Library of Congress is America’s first established cultural institution and the largest library in the world, with millions of items, including books, recordings, photographs, maps and manuscripts in its collections.
Meanwhile, Patience Namadingo, who was part of the entourage, has announced a prolonged stay in the US as Giddes and his team return home next week.
Currently, the entire crew is in Indiana preparing for Saturday’s show.
Namadingo’s manager Tonderai Banda they are prolonging their stay.
He said the artist’s prolonged tour is in line with his dream of securing a recording deal with a US-based label as well as market his Namadingo Foundation.
