Historically, the music of Zimbabwe was representative of every aspect of life in Zimbabwean culture, from birth, through the trials and events of living, to death. Music was used as an instructional tool to emphasize the virtues of events such as the passage into adulthood, marriage, hunting and going to war. The spirituality of African culture and religious beliefs inspired the lyrics of its music. When colonization occurred in Zimbabwe, it brought with it Christian values, beliefs and music that changed the way traditional lyrics and music were written and performed. As Western Christian missionaries advanced, Zimbabwean traditional culture declined. Gone was the Zimbabwean music comprising polyphonic and rhythmic verses, only to be replaced by Western four-part vocals and simplistic meters.
Traditional music in Zimbabwe was used to forge relationships between individuals and families. Later, protest music emerged and was used to vent feelings of anger, hostility, grief and social injustice. A branch of the protest movement was known as Chimurenga, which gained its name from a famed Shona warrior. Chi-Murenga came to mean "spirit of the warrior Murenga," with the first Chimurenga movement occurring in the late 1890s and the second in the late 1960s. The music that grew out of this latter fight for social justice also became known as Chimurenga. Finally, popular music emerged after the 1980 liberation and brought with it more global influence that continues today.
The features of traditional Zimbabwean music include the use of African instruments like the mbira, various drums that are played in multilayered rhythms, and a unified participation of singing, chanting and performance.
The civil unrest that took place between1965 and 1979 brought about a permanent change to the music of Zimbabwe. Local musicians responded to the demand for protest music as a sign of solidarity and support for the revolutionaries, and with that response came new musical features. Lyrics from popular religious songs were changed to reflect the socially unjust situations, and traditional Zimbabwean music changed from songs that reflected community life to songs that were performed to represent oppression brought about by a racially unjust and tyrannical government. According to Dr. Alice Dadirai Kwaramba of postcolonialweb.org, "In a situation where black people were systematically excluded from the formal means of political representation, music became [their alternative method] of articulating their experiences."
Protest songs from artists and activists like Thomas Mapfumo succeeded in emphasizing the state of solidarity and shared angst during times of social strife. The songs contained "them and us" styled lyrics, and the singer intentionally used the pronoun "we" to gain the empathy and support of the listener.
After Zimbabwe's liberation from the British in 1980, popular dance music emerged. Current pop music in Zimbabwe includes guitar bands playing a type of fusion music that is heavily influenced by what is artistically occurring in other parts of the world. Features include heavy guitar sounds, electronic rhythms and synthesized, disco beats made for club dancing. Other popular entertainment venues such as cinemas, jazz clubs and casinos, which were previously segregated, can be found in Zimbabwe's larger cities like Harare, Gweru, Bulawayo and Mutare.
Music and its performance have survived the cultural invasions and protest years of the past decades, and in its place has emerged a new and modern state of entertainment. Dancing, gaming and tourist-driven venues flourish in the major urban areas, along with hotels, restaurants and cultural tours. Commercial theatre, however, is something that is sorely lacking in Zimbabwe. According to Styx Mhlanga from theaterartsnetwork.blogspot.com, "Whatever theater existed during the British occupation was for whites only." Styx is making a concerted effort to reestablish theatre in Zimbabwe, but the process has been slow.
Music has always been considered an extension of the Zimbabwean community more than the private property of an individual. Therefore, it is important to realize that Western influence has forced the music and performance art of Zimbabwe from being used to celebrate the religious beliefs and communal practices of its people to having to make a statement about the social conditions and hardships brought upon them. It is also important to realize that, even now in their liberated state, Western ideals continue to influence Zimbabwe's current music scene.