Breaking the silence: Zimbabwean women’s musical narratives of resistance

In this article, I examine how contemporary Zimbabwean women musicians Hope Masike and Feli Nandi use music as a site of storytelling and resistance within an industry dominated by men. This dominance, which perpetuates the silencing of women, is rooted in their historical exclusion from the music scene, shaped by restrictive patriarchal gender norms that have either limited their participation or relegated them to peripheral roles such as backing vocalists. In addition, certain musical instruments, such as the mbira, have traditionally been reserved for men. Drawing on bell hooks’ concept of “talking back”, I analyse how Masike and Nandi’s work challenges restrictive gender norms by articulating women’s lived experiences of struggle, resilience, and defiance. Masike has sustained a decade-long career in the mbira genre traditionally dominated by men, while Nandi’s transition from backing vocalist to solo artist exemplifies the reclamation of artistic autonomy and the shaping of her own identity as a musician. Both artists blend traditional instruments with contemporary genres, creating hybrid musical forms that assert women’s agency. Using textual analysis of selected songs and music videos—paying particular attention to lyrical meaning as well as visual and aesthetic elements—supplemented by audience reception on YouTube, I demonstrate how Masike and Nandi transform personal and often-silenced experiences into public acts of empowerment, amplifying women’s visibility and contributing to social commentary and cultural change.