Many years have gone down the history lane since Malawi lost one of its theatre geniuses, Du Chisiza Junior of Wakhumbata Ensemble Theatre.
But his legacy refuses to die because his son Tchu Chisiza has resurfaced on the local poetry scene to do wonders.
Born on 14th March to the late Du Chisiza and Wezi Munthali in 1996, Tchu is a revolutionary poet who grew up in the capital Lilongwe.
His poetry focuses advocating for change for the well being of the less privileged Malawians. His style is not different from his late father who was fond of tackling political issues for the betterment of Malawians.
Tchu has poems such as ‘Statesman X’ which mirrors on the socio-political conditions of Malawi and the masterpiece evokes the spirit of the statesman.
“This nation needs more Orton Chirwas, Masauko Chimpemberes, Dunduzus and Rose Chibambos.
“Yes, it needs people who just love their country. That’s the message that I convey in Statesman X,” said Tchu.
The poet has just released a new video of a poem called ‘A day in the Life of The Gifted’ which is currently trending on digital platforms such as Apple Music and Spotify, including Social Media. He has also inspiring poetry projects like ‘Nubian Therapeutics’, ‘Isabel’s Magnolia’ (an Extended Play) and ‘No Photos Please’.
Listening to Tchu’s poems, one gets an impression that he is driven by the struggles of mankind to inspire hope.
“My biggest aspiration is to use my talent to speak life to the shared human experience. My thing is really about channeling life experiences to address the social conditions. I am just trying to use poetry as a channel to spread the voices of the unheard masses,” said Tchu.
Q Malewezi said Tchu is one of the finest poets in Malawi whose touch is influenced by desire to make a difference in our society by being the voice of the voiceless.
Tchu’s poetry journey started during his elementary years. He had been entranced by poetry for as far as he can trek down the memory lane he had lost to the notepad at the age of 10.
“I grew up scribbling anything. My grandmother, Isabel, would hate it because she could see the passion run deep. She feared it would derail my progress academically,” recalled the 28-year-old poet.
Fast forward to 2016, Tchu joined the Sapitwa Poetry Collection which was led by the current president of the Poetry Association of Malawi (PAM), Robert Chiwamba.
He went on to record his first-ever project titled ‘Made in Malawi’ with the help of the Chanco Community Radio.
“My respect goes to Josh Cooper who worked at Chanco Community Radio and used to invite me for numerous radio interviews,” said Tchu.
He also saluted the late Jackie Mapanje, Okomaatani Malunga and Q. Malewezi whom he believes had paved the roads for many poets at a time and in environment that was barely conducive.
On the international scene, he drew his inspiration from poets like Rumis, Wole, Iqbals, Maya Angelous, Suli Breaks, George the poet and Padraig.
Tchu has performed at a number of international festivals like Tumaini and Deft, just to mention but a few.
Tchu graduated from the Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (LUANAR ) in 2019 where he studied Agriculture and Applied Economics.
In the years to come, he said he sees himself breaking into the international stage artistically as well as growing as a career man.
