Not only has the title of Abale Ndikuwuzeni been subject of confusion, being dubbed ‘Abale Ndikum Gem’ in some places & even ‘Африканский музыкант’ in others, people have also been asking us “What is he singing about?”. So after Gasper finished recording a new version of the song in our studio this Summer, we asked our translator friend Thomas Ngwira to do his level best.
The song is sung in Chichewa, the national language of Malawi, although Gasper grew up in a family speaking Chitumbuka, and lives in Nkhata Bay, where Chitonga is spoken. Here are the lyrics in English – and in case you haven’t heard or seen the new proper studio recording of the song, we’ve included that video at the bottom of this page. Gasper’s full album, also entitled ‘Abale Ndikuwuzeni’, will be released on 7th December.
Abale Ndikuwuzeni – People, I want to tell you
People, I want to tell you everything today
People, I want to tell you everything now
People, I should tell you everything today
People, I should tell you everything now
What surprised me, in the whole of Malawi
What I’ve seen in Nkhata Bay
Small children dropping out of school now
Small children know men today
Small children are married nowadays
Small children of 9 years have babies – Mayiwe!
Ah-lalala waaah, Ah-yayaya eeeeh!
Ah-yayaya ooooh, Ah-yayaya ooooh!
Ah-yayaya today, Ah-yayaya Mayiwe!
Ah-yayaya today, Ah-yayaya Mayiwe!
It’s true! It’s true!
People, let me tell you everything now
People, let me tell you everything
People, I want to tell you everything
They said I should tell you everything now
At Njaya, I want to tell you everything
At Mayoka, I want to tell you everything
What surprised me, in the whole of Malawi
What I’ve seen there, in Nkhata Bay
Seeing the whole Malawi…
Seeing the whole Africa
Our destination is (Hell) fire – Mayiwe!
Ah-yayaya waaah, Ah-yayaya eeeeh!
Ah-yayaya ooooh, Ah-yayaya Mayiwe! – Mayiwe!
Ah-yayaya waaah, Ah-yayaya oooh!
Ah-yayaya today, Ah-yayaya Mayiwe!
Spoken Voice: Those who are able to listen, let them do so
It’s true, It’s true mama, It’s true, It’s true
More Fire – More Fire
Spoken voice: That’s the message, if you understand, you understand. If not, that’s your own fault
If you like the track and would like to support Gasper’s music – why not:
Here’s the 2015 studio recording of ‘Abale Ndikuwuzeni’ accompanied by images of Gasper in the studio and around the lake shores of Nkhata Bay.
If you haven’t heard the 2015 studio recording of this song yet, you can listen and watch Gasper in action in this new video.