Samm Farai Monro

Samm Farai Monro, better known as Comrade Fatso, is one of the most popular poets in the Zimbabwe arts scene. Born in 1980 he spent most of his youth in Zimbabwe inspired by life and the struggle for justice. Cde Fatso calls his poetry Toyi Toyi Poetry, urban street poetry that mixes Shona with English, mbira with hip hop, poetry with the struggle to survive. His poetry is the voices of the marginalized, the brutalized, the street kid, the abused maid. His poetry is not the voice of the voiceless. His poetry is insurrection. A flexible performer Fatso performs his rhythmic poetry acapella, accompanied by bass guitar or with his band, Chabvondoka. Chabvondoka's sound effortlessly blends the sound of Chimurenga, Jazz, Afrobeat and Hip Hop to create a sound that is at once revolutionary and immensely danceable. Their performances have uplifted crowds from Harare to Johannesburg, with their recent perfromance at the Harare Interational Festival of the Arts 2007 labelled as "the best perfomance of the festival" (Kinobe & Soul Beat Africa). Fatso has performed extensively, having been invited to perform his rebel poetry at festivals in France, the UK, Kenya, Botswana, Malawi and South Africa. He has shared the stage with leading performers such as Pops Mohammed, Mzwakhe Mbuli, Zubz and Metaphysics while also performing with artists such as Chiwoniso, Kinobe & Soul Beat Africa, Kgafela oa Magogodi, Napo Masheane, Lebo Mashile, Jitsvinger, Dizraeli and Adisa. Fatso's poetry has appeared on BBC, CNN, SABC, Mnet, ZBC, KPFA FM (USA) and various international print media. 2007 saw Fatso nominated for a Zimbawe Human Rights award in the music category, alongside Zimbabwean icons Thomas Mapfumo and Leonard Zhakata. Not one to be confined, Fatso is more than a mere poet. He has been arrested in 5 African and European countries for his political beliefs and activism. As a cultural activist he is one of the founders of the House of Hunger Poetry Slam, Harare's hugely popular poetry slam where the next generation of poets spit fire to appreciative crowds. At the same time he is co-founder of the Uhuru Network, a radical grassroots youth network that uses arts, media, permaculture and community action in the struggle for social justice in Harare's ghettos. Fatso recently founded MAGAMBA! a cultural activist network that uses arts and culture in the struggle for justice in Zimbabwe organising resistance concerts in Zimbabwe and the SADC region. Fatso has also been involved in journalism for many years starting when he was 17 years old as a columnist for the popular Horizon magazine and has subsequently had articles on politics and culture appearing in publications such as The Zimbabwean (UK), ZMag (USA), SchNEWS (UK) and Indymedia (USA).