Muli Nane - Grace Chinga Moffat from the album Esther

Grace Chinga died in March 2016, hours after announcing her fourth studio album titled ‘Esther’. It was a highly anticipated project bearing in mind that it had been six years since she came up with an album. ‘Udzayimba Nyimbo’, one of the most popular and personal gospel albums in Malawi.
In it we saw a Grace Chinga who had gone through one of her deepest life moments and used music to promise herself better days. An average life of an album in Malawi is three years. But Grace Chinga remained relevant despite her album being six years after release.
Had she died before ‘Esther’ was recorded, her previous songs could still have done the job of reminding people of how talented she was. But with ‘Esther’ in the offing as she was breathing her last, and already announced, people had the opportunity to have a glimpse of her last effort on something she dearly loved; music.
‘Esther’, even before she was buried, got leaked and found itself in the market. This has been a challenge for a long time in Malawi. The pirates may have stolen money from the family, the rightful people who deserved it, but they could not with the enormous talent that she had, and she fortunately left to her children.

The album was largely produced by Grace Chinga’s first born son, Steve Spesho, at his GimmeTheBeat Studio in Blantyre. He produced eight out of the eleven songs in the album, including the title track, ‘Esther’, which will be our main focus in this article. ‘Esther’, the album, is probably the biggest project he had to handle so far, as a producer. A quick assessment shows that he rose to the occasion and produced one of the greatest gospel albums in our times.

Just like with ‘Thandizo Langa’ in 2008 and ‘Udzayimba Nyimbo’ in 2010, ‘Esther’ falls within the trend of Grace Chinga telling her personal story in an album title. But ‘Esther’ is subliminal in the sense that it does not come out as something from her, but as a human being.

She finishes the song by taking the position of the Jews while facing the planned extermination. She also takes the position of Esther, by complaining of the wrongs being done on her and the people. With the Jews in the Bible taking a human action, as God was never involved as in other books, the song also talks of the need for people to act in order to get saved.
Mkhutche-Malawi 24

LYRICS
Yehova pothawira panga ,
(Jehova is my refuge)
Mbusa wanga, Mfumu yanga ine,
(My Shepherd and my King)
Thandizo, Yankho lopezekeratu,
(My helper and My instant solution)
Mumsautso, mumavuto oh oh,
(In tribulations and in troubles)
N’Chifukwa chake sindichita mantha,
(That is why am not afraid)
Lingakhale lisanduke dziko,
(Even If the world turns against me)
Mapiri akhale mkati mwa Nyanja sinditekeseka.
(Even if the hills are submerged, I will not be shaken)

Monga mwana wa chiomba nkhanga,
(Just like an eagle’s child)
Ndinazana mu uzimu ine,
(Am spiritually anointed)
Nnatengedwa ine ndi dad kundipititsa mmwamba kundisiya ndekha,
mmalere
(My father threw me up and left me there alone)
kuti ndithe mantha nkunditandiranso pansi , kundiwakha ndisagwe kuti ndikwime.

(So that I could become fearless and caught me before I fell and I became strong)

Ngakhale ineyo ndiyenda mchigwa chake cha mnthunziwo wa imfa sindidzaopa choipa mbuye muli nane

Nyengo imene ndinabadwa, farao ankapha ana amuna,
(I was born when Pharaoh was killing all male born children)
Koma ine amai anga anandibisa kumtsinje pamwamba pamadzi.
(But my loving mother hid me in waters)
Mwana wake wa farao kunditola osandipha ine.
(Pharao’s daughter found me but she did not kill me)
Nandisunga kundilera adani omwewo.
(I was raised by the enemies themselves)
M’nandiponyera m’moto ,m’madzi pokana zofuna zanu.
(You threw me in fires and waters just because I refused behave like you)
Munaiwala ndinamizidwa momo ndikufa ndi khristu kuuka wamoyo.
(You forgot that i died and raised together with Christ through water baptism)
Moti madzi ndi moto zitidziwa ,zitichitira ubwino.
(Waters and fires acknowledge and respect us)
Timaponda ,mkango ,njoka zinkhanira.
(We tread upon lions, serpents and scorpions)

Maso a yehova sadzachoka paine nthawi zonse,
(The eyes of Jehovah are always upon us)
Zondiyanja, zokoma,zifundo , ndondondo paine kwamuyaya
(Goodness and mercies shall me forever)
Sindidzasunthika ine ndi zochitika za mdziko lino ,
(I will never not moved by the world )
Komano dziko lidzasunthika nane
(But I will move the world)
Masautso aolungama angakhale achuluka zedi,
(Many are the afflictions of a righteous man)
koma Yehova walonjeza kutiteteza tonse kwa onsewo.
(But Jehovah promised to deliver us from them all)
Ateteza ziwalo zones kuti zisaonongeke.
(He protects our bodies from harm)
Ndife ziphona tili oposa agonjetsi
(We are more than conqurers)