Butshilo Nleya
The Artist
Butshilo was born in Nkulumane Township, Bulawayo, Zimbabwe and spent much of his childhood, like most children in the townships, learning crucial ghetto survival skills such as absconding from school and attempting to play football on the dusty streets. After finishing his A’ levels badly, he then auditioned for the African Awareness Community Theatre where he began his musical and theatrical journey, mostly as a dancer. This quickly led to another audition for Grassroots Theatre Company who were en route to UK looking for a drummer. Here a passion of working within Theatre and Development was born.
On tour he formed a relationship with WorldShapers where he currently works. After a turbulent few years of touring and development work in Zimbabwe, he approached Sabela Music Projects to take his work forward in a different direction and has never looked back since. He is focussing on music and theatre in education in Zimbabwe and elsewhere. “I am a storyteller. Sometimes telling the same story that everyone loves to hear but mostly trying to make a story. One that I will be told by my children and everyone I meet and engage with. I do this by drumming, by writing, by singing, by inspiring, by listening.”
His Music
Music has always been a crucial aspect of Butshilo’s life, notwithstanding the fact that he thinks he does not know how the notation works. Butshilo majors in World Music focussing specifically on Ethnic Percussion Music. The style of music is solely to get people dancing and grooving.