Romeo Mudimu, or DJ Romeofoxy – as he’s known by fans and listeners alike – has the mind of an entrepreneur and a creative spirit that’s charting new territory in the Zimbabwean music industry. Born in Tshotsholo, a small community in the Matebeleland region of Zimbabwe, he later spent his childhood in Bulawayo – the second largest city in Zimbabwe. As a high-schooler, Romeo settled in Kwekwe – a town in the Midlance province. Now based in Harare, the capital city of Zimbabwe, he continues to inspire confidence in other young Africans with his positive funky vibes through his radio and television program. Romeo plans to travel the world, collaborate with like-minded artists, and share his afro-beats through new platforms!

It’s been a few months since we first met in December while I was in Harare. I remember having some awesome conversations with Romeo that were both funny and meaningful. Being a musician myself, I understand the challenges that one has to overcome in the artistic sphere. I absolutely loved Romeo’s zest for life and his desire to influence and be a part of developing the emerging music industry in Zim. I remember listening with intrigue as he told me about the kind of music he fuses with his DJ-ing skills – what he calls “Afro-house”. Before going to Zim, I’d never heard of that combination in my life! I’m sure it exists in the world, but just probably not in Australia! (Laughs.) It’s basically an eclectic fusion of Afro-beats and House music. His brother – Kenneth Mudimu – played me some tunes from the genre, and I was pretty fascinated by its atmospheric nature and the crazy rhythms running through! If you never heard of this quirky sub-genre, be sure to check it out. In the meantime, let’s hear from DJ Romeofoxy…

Janielle | When did you discover the art of DJ-ing and what’s the coolest gig you’ve ever done?

Romeo | I have always loved music and spent a lot of time listening to cassettes when I was younger and sharing the music with my friends. Though DJ-ing was not something that I ever thought of for a long time, in 2003, I thought I’d share the music that I loved with people on a much bigger platform – so naturally, I thought of becoming a DJ. I put together what I call ‘Afro-house’, which has strong elements of African instruments, with emphasis on drums, wind instruments, mbira (a thumb-piano originating in Zimbabwe), and all these cultural samples which date back centuries ago – but I bring them back to life to suit the contemporary club context. 

Romeo | The coolest gig that I have ever done was recently this year, when I played music for a five year-old’s birthday celebration for free :) It was really special and challenging at the same time, but at the end of the party I felt really good seeing all the smiles on their little faces, and I was glad I did the gig!

Janielle | I love how it always begins with something you love doing. I think that’s what our first conversation was about! So, who inspired you to pursue the sphere of music – which I believe can be a lot tougher than settling for an ordinary job in Zim?

Romeo | My faith in God. Through His word, I am challenged to live a purpose-driven life and to serve him through the gifts that he has given me in the arts. 

Janielle | That’s so cool! I think it’s extremely rare to find guys like you who can see yourself using music and DJ-ing for God! At the moment, what’s a challenge facing upcoming musicians in Zimbabwe or Africa in general?

Romeo | In Zimbabwe, the biggest challenge that artists face is economic hardship – it is difficult and expensive to produce quality music and to make a living out of the industry. It’s also tough to gather enough support from the general public since the arts is thought of to be a ‘non-essential’ for people.

Janielle | That’s the reason why I believe in what you do. It may be ‘non-essential’, but I think every culture, and every society needs its own style of expression. Although it’s tough to get there, I think music is definitely something that can be used for a greater purpose! Amidst all the things in the media industry that could weigh you down, what’s the one thing that keeps you anchored?

Janielle | How simple and true! It’s that passion that keeps us going. So what’s next for you and where do you plan to travel in the future?

Romeo | Right now, I’m working on advancing as a DJ. While most other DJ’s focus on mixing music, I am going beyond that to focus on live video mixing – something that is not being done on the market, and especially in Zimbabwe.

As we speak, I have completed a pilot project in the form of a television program called InDaMix that’s being aired on national television. It is already receiving positive responses from the public and I intend to promote this by delving further into the area of video mixing. So far, I have ventured into producing Christian music and videos. I’ve also been involved on Zimbabwean radio where I’ve begun doing Christian dance mixes for the purpose of uplifting those who listen to my show.

In my plans to travel, I’d love to go to France, Australia, and the USA, and bring some Afro-vibes in those parts! 

So much has happened in the last fourteen days, it makes me grin like an idiot with utmost gratitude as well as excitement and anticipation for what is yet to come. As if all these things were not enough, another amazing thing transpired this afternoon.

Remember I posted a status on the day I arrived in Zimbabwe on the 6^th of December? I wrote briefly about meeting an amicable white Zimbabwean couple named Bruce and Sue Douglas. On my flight from Johannesburg to Harare, I found myself seated beside them. Interestingly, the lady Sue, decided to strike a conversation with me. I thought that she was being exceptionally friendly. By her accent, I figured she must have been a white South African or Zimbabwean. Anyhow, as the conversation progressed, we soon found out that we were kindred spirits as they were fervent believers in Jesus, just as much as I. You know, it’s funny how you get that ‘feeling’ when you meet people who share the same mind and heart concerning such matters. I just couldn’t shake off the sense that they might have been Christians too. When I asked, true enough, they were.

Sue then jokingly said, ‘Aw, God gave me an easy one today!’ When I gave her a puzzled look, she chuckled and explained, ‘You see, whenever Bruce and I get on a plane, we make a pact to talk to people, and if the opportunity arises, we share with them our faith in God.’ She leant towards me and smiled, ‘Whenever we see a lady in our row, it would be my chance to sit beside her and strike a conversation. If it is a gentleman, it would be my husband’s turn! So today when we walked along our aisle and saw you taking a seat, I was to be the one to sit beside you. I was wondering if you’d put on your headphones as most young people do, then I wouldn’t have the chance to talk to you. But well, you didn’t!’

Funnily enough, my phone was running out of battery, otherwise I most probably would have put my headphones on. Anyway, our conversation turned out to be a most intriguing one! Bruce and Sue told me a bit about their background. Bruce was born in Kenya and could speak Swahili, but he later moved to various cities and finally settled in Zimbabwe, which was then British-ruled Rhodesia. Sue was born a white Zimbabwean. They had two biological children, and two more adopted black Zimbabwean children. 18 years ago, the couple decided to foster and adopt two abandoned babies from a Zimbabwean orphanage, one of whom was tested HIV-positive. It was only about ten long years later that they were allowed to formally adopt these two children – David and Deborah. The regulations concerning adoption are very strict in Zimbabwe. It was certainly no easy route for white Zimbabwean to adopt black Zimbabwean children. Nevertheless, by the grace of God, this amazingly tenacious and faithful couple managed to pull through and take these two children as their own.

They told me how in 2008, when things were so bad in Zimbabwe both economically and politically, that they were forced to leave their farm and flee the country for a time. Many of their fellow white Zimbabwean friends and family left the country for good. But for some reason, Bruce and Sue knew that God would eventually call them back to Zimbabwe. And that is exactly what they did. Despite the dire situation and perpetual uncertainty, they came back a year later and established their farm land and butchery business in the area of Chinhoyi once again.

Now the really cool part is when they told me why they came back. Bruce and Sue knew that God was calling them to reach the people of rural Zimbabwe. Four years ago, Bruce began to take his fishing boat out to Lake Kariba in the north. He would sail along the coast of Kariba and stop by at the rural fishing villages along the way. Knowing nobody, and often finding it difficult to communicate with the villagers, he nevertheless felt that God wanted him to build relationships and friendships with these people. Soon enough, Sue also began joining him on these trips and eventually, they also had friends from other parts of Zimbabwe, Africa and around the world who would go on missions outreaches with them along Lake Kariba. What I loved about their testimony was the way God had inspired them to reach out to these rural Zimbabweans. They told me that all they wanted to do first of all was form trusting friendships with these families. They did not want to give out charitable donations as many other organisations – both secular and Christian – were doing. Over the last four years, these friendships have been forming and the bonds between them strengthened, despite the cultural, racial, and religious and communication barriers. Eventually, when they have had the opportunity to assist these communities and individuals with material aid, the support was regarded not as an impersonal ‘donation’, but as a gift – a symbol of true friendship and caring that demonstrates God’s love to these people in a way that is real, relatable and lasting.

Just before we touched down in Harare, I asked Bruce, ‘What is your prayer for the nation of Zimbabwe and for your work in the rural fishing villages?’

He gave me a knowingly sincere smile and said simply, ‘We are just praying that the people of Zimbabwe will come to know God’s love and its transforming power. Both people in the city and in the villages need Jesus. It will begin with that love.’

As we landed, Sue kindly gave me their business card and phone numbers. She told me to call them as soon as I got my Zimbabwean number, and I would be welcome to visit and stay with them any time that I like while I am in the country! I was so amazed by their open-hearted generosity and genuine willingness to look out for perfect strangers. I could hardly believe it – here I was, having barely touched down in Zimbabwe, and God was already crossing my paths with such incredible folk! Can I say it again (as I often have in many of my recent posts): MIND-BLOWN.

So anyhow, that was the long story of it. Today, after two weeks of pure hectic missions and travel in Harare (and it seems such a long time since my encounter with the Douglas’s), I decided to contact Sue. Now here’s the amazing thing about all God encounters or ‘divine appointments’ as they call it – the timing is absolutely perfect. It turns out that Bruce and Sue will be coming down to Harare (from Chinhoyi, which is about one and a half hours drive north) on Sunday tomorrow, because they are dropping their daughter at the airport. When I told Sue if it would be okay to visit them before Christmas, she immediately offered, ‘Oh tomorrow we’ll be coming by Harare and we can definitely pick you up in the afternoon!’ How easy was that?

They said I could stay for as long as I could. Well the plan is that I want to be back in Harare for Christmas with my friend Marc and his family, whom I’ll have the privilege of staying with during the holiday time. Sue chirped cheerily, ‘Oh no problem, we have a driver and we can certainly arrange for you to be back in Harare before Christmas!’

Can I say it again, mind-blown! You just have to know that these guys are perfect strangers. I chatted with them for about one hour on the plane, and they left their numbers with me, and that was it. I didn’t have to call them again, but for some reason, today I felt compelled to. And it turned out to be the best timing to call. I still can’t believe it. I’ll get to see this other side of Zimbabwe – living with this white Zimbabwean couple and their two adopted children, now teenagers. I’ll get to visit their rural church and also hear more about their missions work along the fishing villages up Lake Kariba. I’ll get to live on a real farm!!! And Bruce has told me about his library of many biographies and Christian literature, he is excited to show me some of his favourite titles. And, Sue has also mentioned that they have an upright piano in their home that I could have a tinker on! Oh my word, I am just so happy and full of joy that I cannot contain it. Thank you God!

It is certainly beyond my imagination and all the prayers I have made before coming to Zimbabwe and even as I was travelling here. I asked God to lead me to the right people. I wanted to experience different sides of Zimbabwe. And now I believe this is one of the many answered prayers! It’s just so cool. Maybe it just seems like coincidence to many, but I know it isn’t – because the kind of people I’m meeting is just way too specific to the kind I have asked God to cross my journey with. It’s this specificity that just takes my breath away. When I started this website ‘Wayfarer By Faith’ before my trip to the Middle East, I wrote in my vision statement that I want to be a wayfarer by faith. I wanted to cross barriers and build bridges across those gaps in between cultures through my music, my words, my life and my faith. It is happening as I have committed it to God. Now I can write about things like this, because it’s really happening as I am taking it step by step. I just want to get to know people in different places, see life through their eyes, share my faith and let others share theirs with me. This is travel, this is missions, and this is living for a purpose and making every opportunity count for God’s glory. Although you and I may fail a thousand times in the making, God never fails you and me.

Mindblown. Again.

Today was another eventful day spent at the Hatcliffe township. We were going to visit a few families and pray together with them. I went along with Pastor Sean and Mr. Lovemore, a Zimbabwean who is currently living in Hatcliffe, pioneering the new church with Sean and serving the community by teaching orphaned children as well as using his skills as a physiotherapist to help those in the village who are elderly, crippled, bedridden and disabled. Now I have quite a few stories to write about, and I hope these incredible individuals and their God-inspired tenacity will challenge you out of your comfort zone too – wherever you are.

There’s Noma, who is a beautiful, ever-smiling young lady who runs a preschool for children living in Hatcliffe. She charges a minimal school fee and makes sure that the children have a hot meal each day, too. She and her friend Ellen was kind enough to cook us a simple lunch of rice, curried potatoes and carrots, with a chunk of meat – which is most certainly a treat in such places. We were honored to pray for their work and their amazing hearts and burden for what God is most concerned about – the orphans and widows.

Sean led us along the muddy fields to a brick-dwelling where we met Mama Maibana (I hope I got the spelling right!), who is one of the few midwives in the area. With the support of ONE Church, she has finally been able to construct a brick home and another extra room with two rickety beds and thin mattresses for the young women she will be helping. This month alone, she has already helped to deliver fifteen healthy babies! What a feat, especially in such difficult circumstances. Maibana also has a daughter named Progress (legit, that’s her name!) who recently started a pre-school in a makeshift hut they have constructed out of wood planks. There were ABC’s and some coloured drawings posted inside. At the moment, she has 15 children under her care, and the room is really much to tiny for that number – but she has a vision, and we prayed that God would enable her mission to raise and disciple young children for His glory and purpose. And that progress would come through this amazing initiative.

After that, we walked through a sort of market lane. There was a sadza stand, a paraffin-fill-up kind of hut, a furniture hut, a barber stand, a tuck shop selling air-time and other miscellaneous stuff, a rack selling tomatoes, a piece of cloth with a few pairs of slippers and crocs displayed for sale, and some others. But it was a strange sight indeed. Even in Harare, you would never see such a set up. It all looked very unofficial (obviously) and the uneven mud-path just made it hard to walk without having to look carefully where you’re stepping foot! Anyhow, we arrived at the hut of a girl named Evon. She was only fourteen years old, but she sat in a wheelchair and greeted us with a wave and handshake. Other children – her brothers, I presume – ran around, eyeing us and saying ‘howar yuuuuu’ incessantly. Lovemore explained that Evon was actually first bedridden in 2011, after an operation that remove a cancerous brain tumour. She wasn’t able to communicate, write or do anything, really. But one year ago, Lovemore started to help Evon with physiotherapy methods and eventually, she was able to walk very slowly with the help of a walker. Nowadays she gets around with a wheelchair (to be honest I don’t know how that is even possible on the muddy grounds). Lovemore, being a teacher, was also able to teach her English and mathematics. He found that Evon was a truly bright girl, and he wanted to invest more time with her. It was so inspiring to see how one person can make such a huge difference for a young girl who used to be bedridden and who had no hope of going to school.

We knelt down beside Evon while Sean prayed for her with a deep sincerity that struck me. He spoke words of life and encouragement to this beautiful girl. When he noticed that she was sad, he told her that Jesus loves her so much, and that she has people like us, Lovemore, her funny brothers, and her Gogo (grandma) who loves her and cares very much for her. Then he asked her what she wanted to become in the future. Evon had her chin rested on her arms, as they perched on the walker bar. She looked so doleful, it pained my heart. She didn’t want to say it. But then Lovemore asked her again, this time in Shona. Finally she replied him and Lovemore translated, ‘She wants to be a pilot.’

That broke my heart even more. Seeing her, unable to run, unable to go to school, unable to communicate freely with other children her age, her dream seemed an impossibility. But you know what, in that moment, Lovemore and Pastor Sean demonstrated a faith that I will never forget. Lovemore immediately said with the sincerest of smiles, ‘You know, Evon is a smart girl. She can become a pilot. She is clever, and she is so good at math!’

Sean picked up on that and said without skipping a beat, ‘How about we pray for you again, Evon? We will pray that one day you can become a pilot.’

At first I thought it was such a cruel thing to do – to give false hope. But then, when Sean started praying, I realized that it wasn’t false hope at all. It was faith-filled hope. I was mind-blown.

Sean prayed that God would enable Evon, fill her legs with new strength, give her the wisdom and resolve, the intelligence and the means, to achieve her dream. God knows she has it in her to be the first female pilot out of Hatcliffe. He prayed that every dark, doubtful thought would not bring Evon down; that depression and sadness and hopelessness would go in Jesus name. He prayed that light and inspiration would come to this place through a bright, hard-working young girl like Evon. It was a relentless kind of faith that I saw right before my eyes – in a place so dank and dark, where it can be so difficult to envision a future bright and beautiful. But that mustard seed of faith was there. I believe it infused a new spiritual strength into Evon. Sean told Evon, ‘Do you know, that you inspire and encourage me?’ Wow. It was true. This girl blessed us more than she could imagine by the life she has fought to live, by the pain she has fought to overcome.

I learnt something so important today. I learnt that I need to see as God sees. When I walk in these tough places, I need to see God’s light, and not be overwhelmed by the engulfing darkness. I needed to be encouraged by the constant reminder of God’s goodness and love through the redemptive work of Christ Jesus. I needed to fix my eyes on the hope that comes through him and not be discouraged by all the obstacles in the way.

The storm clouds were gathering and blowing over Hatcliffe. It started drizzling as we finished praying, so Lovemore told us we’d better hurry on to the last family we wanted to visit. Now as we were almost reaching the next place, only about 500 metres from it, heavy rain started pouring down cats and dogs. It was so heavy we didn’t risk running on the muddy path, so we ran into a shelter where a bunch of guys were already hanging out. It turned out that the guys had been drinking the local brew made out of sorghum alchohol. Anyway, they were actually quite friendly and jovial. We all introduced ourselves, and very soon Sean was joking and laughing along with them in colloquial Shona. Eventually, he actually asked them what they were doing, and when they admitted they’d just been lazing around and drinking, he told them point blank: ‘You know, there’s a verse in the Bible – in the book of Ephesians I think – that says, “Do not be drunk with wine, but be filled with God’s spirit.”’

The guys laughed him off and demanded to know, ‘Where in the Bible does it say huh?’ Sean without hesitation whipped out his iPhone Bible and found the passage – but before he read it out, he asked the guys if it’d be okay to pray with them and commit this time to God. Amazingly, they were cool with that. I just smiled in awe at the sight. Here we were, filthy with mud splotched on our legs, rainwater in our hair, standing under a rickety shelter with a bunch of half drunk Zimbabwean guys, and Sean proceeded to read in Ephesians where it says, ‘Redeem the time, because the days are evil. Do not be drunk with wine, which leads to debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, singing songs and psalms to each other at all times.’ He asked them, ‘Does what you’re doing look like making good use of your time?’ That obviously put them on the spot, but they got into a friendly (and rather funny) discussion about all that – through which Sean used every opportunity to share with them some business and entrepreneurship ideas based on Biblical principles (that he has been incorporating through his micro-finance initiative – NDEIPI – in Harare with unemployed or homeless youth).

Eventually though, the guys seemed pretty open to us. Sean asked if they knew who Jesus was and why he came. In the ensuing minutes, he shared the Gospel with them in such simple but truth-filled terms. He asked if anyone wanted to know Jesus more, not tomorrow, but today, right now. Amazingly, three of the guys – Herbert, Philip and Trust – put their hands up and nodded. So there we were, laying our hands on their shoulders, and we prayed together as Lovemore led these guys in a prayer to receive the gift of God’s love and salvation through Jesus in Shona. Wow. And guess what, just about then, the rain started to taper off and soon enough it was time for us to go since the storm had blown over. I truly believe it was by no small chance that we ran into that shelter just in the nick of time.

It was worth all the slipping and sliding in the mud, getting filthy and wet from the rivers of muddy rainwater. God knew where we were headed even when we thought we were just going to visit a few families on our agenda. I believe when we live a life surrendered to Jesus, there will be no coincidences. There might be accidents and troubles that come along our way, but as long as we fix our trust on Him, we can wade through these trials with our head above the mire – knowing that where we’re headed, God will refine us through the fire.