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Tendazvaitwa Medea Chitimbe (born April 3, 1987)[2] is a Zimbabwean dancehall musician who adopted the moniker ‘Ninja Lady’ from her boss and mentor Winky D who is called Ninja President by his legion of fans. She first rose to fame after featuring in Winky D's song Taitirana paFirst Sight in 2011.[3]
Ninja Lipsy | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Tendazvaitwa Medea Chitimbe |
| Also known as | Ninja Lady |
| Born | April 3, 1987 [1] Harare, Zimbabwe |
| Origin | Zimbabwe |
| Genres | Dancehall |
| Occupation | Singer-songwriter |
| Instrument | Vocals |
| Years active | 2002–present |
| Labels |
|
Biography
editLipsy was born in 1987 in Harare, the capital of Zimbabwe, she attended Mbizi Primary School, one of the oldest and best primary schools in Harare's Old Highfields Suburb and Highfield 2 High School.[4] She started her musical career as early as 2002 and joined Vigilance Records in 2009. While at Vigilance Records, she did a track ‘Taitirana’ with renowned dancehall artist Winky D. The collaboration made her to become popular. She has released songs such as ‘Kumaninja’ and ‘Mababie Anoita’. In February 2015, Ninja Lipsy was nominated for two awards in the 2014 Zimdancehall Awards.[5] In 2021, she collaborated with Jamaican-born dancehall artist, Shalkal on his Single, 'Put God First.'[6]
Controversy
editPfee song
editIn 2018, Ninja Lipsy made waves with "Pfee", a song she did on the Avion Riddim produced by Levels of Chillspot Records and DJ Tamuka from the Jah Prayzah lead Military Touch Productions.[7] She dismissed rumours about the song being a political endorsement of Emerson Munangagwa[President of Zimbabwe] saying while the title was open to various interpretations, it was not political. Pfee, which is a Shona idiophone that describes sudden action, was popularised as a Zanu PF slogan. The song has attracted mixed reactions from listeners, with others saying it had political connotations, while others felt it carried sexual innuendo.
“I talk about a driver who has to be cautious on the road to avoid accidents. Others also describe the song in a sexual manner but, well, it is for the listeners to give meaning to the song.”
“We have worked together with Tamuka as a collective with other artistes, but this was the first time we worked together without anyone else. The song was his idea. He just shared the concept with me when we were in the studio. I sampled the beat, wrote the lyrics and recorded in one day,” she said.[8][7]
Health
editIn 2018, Lipsy decided to come out and tell the world about her medical condition in a lengthy Facebook post, she told of how society had shunned her and how she had lost friends because of the epilepsy.[9] and it has impacted on her career making it hard to perform at times.
“Other musicians shying to disclose their medical conditions need to understand that we are the people’s voice and our job is to entertain and learn at the same time. So they need to speak out and share what they go through from what they know,” said Lipsy [10]
Epilepsy is a chronic disorder of recurrent unprovoked seizures. A person is diagnosed with epilepsy if they have two unprovoked seizures (or one unprovoked seizure with the likelihood of more) that were not caused by some known and reversible medical condition like alcohol withdrawal or extremely low blood sugar.[11][12]
Awards
editZimdancehall Awards
edit| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Herself | Best Female Artiste of the Year | Nominated | [13][14] |
| Herself | Best Vocalist of the Year | Nominated | [15][16] |
Discography
editAlbums
edit- Singles Collection Volume One (2019)
Singles
editSee also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Ninja Lipsy Bio". Music In Africa. Retrieved 23 May 2019.
- ^ "Ninja Lipsy: The dancehall queen who never was". The Herald Zimbabwe. The Herald. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
- ^ Dube, Sindiso (December 27, 2017). "Zimbabwe: Ninja Lipsy - the Dancehall Queen Who Never Was". Allafrica.com.
- ^ "Ninja Lipsy - Pindula". Pindula.co.zw.
- ^ "Ninja Lipsy". Musicinafrica.net. July 3, 2015.
- ^ Mills, Claude (19 April 2021). "Shalkal Lands Collab With Zimbabwean Dancehall Artist Ninja Lipsy". Dancehallmag. p. 1.
- ^ a b "Ninja Lipsy defends her song "Pfee"". Mbaretimes.com. September 12, 2018.
- ^ "Ninja Lipsy explains Pfee song". Newsday.co.zw. September 12, 2018.
- ^ "Epilepsy". Facebook.com. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
- ^ "The wonderwoman against epilepsy". Zimbanice.co.zw. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
- ^ "People shun me because of my condition: Ninja Lipsy". Chronicle Zimbabwe. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
- ^ "Ninja Lipsy opens up on health. . . some think I am on drugs". The Herald Zimbabwe. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
- ^ "Zimdancehall Awards 2014 Winners - Pindula". Pindula.co.zw.
- ^ "Zimdancehall Awards winners list - the ZimTainment". www.thezimtainment.co.zw. Archived from the original on 6 January 2018. Retrieved 17 January 2022.
- ^ "Zimdancehall awards 2014 nominees out". Newsday.co.zw. December 29, 2014.
- ^ "Zim Dancehall Awards nominees announced". Musicinafrica.net. February 6, 2015.
- ^ "Ninja lipsy - Mazano (pro by Tman)". Zimbojam.com. April 12, 2019.
- ^ "Ninja Lipsy : Pfee (Avion Riddim) Official Audio". Zimbojam.com. February 20, 2019.