Musician Lulu on Tuesday night had a defining moment of his career when he performed before 16 Sourthern African Development Community (Sadc) heads of State and Government during a State banquet at Kamuzu Palace in Lilongwe.
The smartly dressed musician was supported by Mathumela Band in dishing out some of his popular songs.
They included Ungondibwelezera, Hanna, Mponyere, among others.
However, his challenging moment came when he got a message from Zimbabwe President Emerson Mnangagwa requesting him to play any Oliver Mtukudzi song.
“I was taken aback. I did not expect such a request, especially bearing in mind that I had never performed a song by the legendary artist,” said Lulu in a post-performance interview.
He said he used his experience to perform an instrumental version of the song Thodi.
“I studied Mtukudzi’s songs in the past, but I had never performed them. This was a big test for me,” said Lulu, who said he was relieved when the song’s performance went on smoothly.
Commenting on the opportunity to perform before so many heads of State and powerful delegates, Lulu said this was his career-defining moment.
He said: “I realise that many people in Malawi never fully understood what I am capable of doing. Their reactions indicated shock and were pleasantly surprised that with Mathumela Band, I can hold a live performance dishing out jazz and other known genres while patrons enjoy a meal.”
Lulu added that it was a great experience to see patrons responding to his music which gave him energy to soldier on.
Lulu was supported by Mathumela Band comprising Cuthbert Masinja on the drums, Alfred Mulimbika on the bass guitar, Joe Chikhosi on the keyboards, Dan Sibale on the saxophone and Lulu himself handled the lead guitar. The sound engineers were Sunganani Ikwanga and Patrick Banda.
