By Fanuel Viriri
Swag has always been part of entertainment. Musicians live for it. And Safirio “Mukadota” Madzikatire had it in abundance.
Back in the 1980s, he cruised around in a sun-kissed, butter-yellow BMW. The paintwork gleamed like liquid sunshine, catching every eye and turning heads down any street. For a Zimbabwean artist in that era, owning a brand-new BMW was not just a purchase — it was a statement. Mukadota made it. He later added a Mercedes-Benz to his garage too.
I still remember seeing him glide into Mtapa Hall in Gweru in that radiant BMW when I was a young boy. It’s no wonder he wrote the cheeky hit “Ndichaitenga Yangu” — “I’ll buy my own one day.” Decades later, we’re still obsessed with cars, but Mukadota was flexing before it was a trend.
Mukadota lived boldly and ahead of his time. He was financially savvy and bought a family home in Cranborne, Harare. After his passing, the house passed to his son Elijah.
They are also unconfirmed reports that allege that he was also addicted to gambling. It is alleged he bettered wildly on “flipper” (pinball). He once lost a Mercedes Benz after losing a flipper match.
I was privileged to watch the portly, jovial legend perform. He had a warm, velvety voice and humor that could split your ribs. He would walk on stage and you’d hear the room go, “Ha ha!” before he even spoke. He traveled with a big entourage of performers and hosted “Family Shows” — events where mothers brought children of all ages, from toddlers to teenagers. Everyone was welcome.
Mtapa Hall was his Gweru home base. The venue itself is steeped in history. It was there, from 21–24 May 1964, that ZANU-PF held its first congress. Ndabaningi Sithole was elected president and Robert Mugabe became secretary-general. Ian Smith’s government later banned the party that same year.
Mtapa Hall was also Gweru’s music mecca. South Africa’s The Hurricanes — of 1979’s Lover’s Paradise fame — played there. So did pop outfit Spankk, whose backing vocalist Brenda Fassie would later explode into superstardom.
But for locals, the biggest drawcard was always Safirio Madzikatire and the Sea Cottage Sisters.
Mukadota was a true multi-disciplinary artist — comedian, musician, storyteller. His nickname came from his iconic role as “Mukadota Baba vaRwizi” on The Mukadota Family, the beloved Shona TV drama that ran on ZTV through the 1980s and early 1990s.
He ran two casts: one for television, another for live music shows.
Katarina, born Elizabeth Taderera, was scouted in Mutare in the late 1970s. Machipisa — Cathrine Madzore — plus Molly and “Big Gladys” Motsi were poached from Zex Manatsa’s band. Then there was “Robot” — Sinoia White — a Michael Jackson impersonator Mukadota discovered among a group of boys in Mvurwi in 1979. I met Manyowa myself at Jazz 105 in 2011. Still jolly, still dancing, and now based in Chitungwiza.
According to veteran arts journalist and music researcher Wonder Guchu, Mukadota founded the Sea Cottage Sisters who moved with the Ocean City Band. Around the same time he launched a radio program, Mhuri YavaMakore_, featuring himself, Susan, Elijah, and Susan’s late daughter Patricia. Webster Shamu — later a post-Independence minister — produced it before leaving for the liberation war. The late Patrick Bajila then took over.
When the show became a hit, it jumped to television. After a disagreement among producers, the name changed in 1972 to _Mhuri YaVaMukadota_. Mukadota, Susan Chenjerai later told Guchu, was a comical character from her village. So Safirio became Mukadota, Susan became Amai Rwizi, and their real son Elijah played Rwizi.
More characters followed: the late Absolom Mangota as Baba vaPhineas, Juliet Masunda as Amai Phineas, Boniface “Bonnie” Chinemo, and later John Muyambo as Chibhodhoro from the Great Sounds.
One of Mukadota’s richest finds was Elizabeth “Katarina” Taderera. He met her in Mutare in 1977, and she became his most reliable stage and TV partner. Together they delivered classics like Kwa Hunyani and Dickson.
Mukadota was not just a performer. He was color, confidence, and comedy on wheels — literally. And that butter-yellow BMW told the story before he even opened his mouth
