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About
Uncle Rex
 Who is Uncle Rex, You
may ask. He likes to call himself the pioneer of jazz music in Zambia,
earning his experience in the early 70s as a child. Since then, this
soul brother has been the man behind stars such as J.K, Joe Chibangu,
Maureen Lilanda, and Jane Osborne. He was the founder of Reality, the
gospel group from GO-CENTER worship grounds. He later on started his
work on his first debut album Fingerspeech.
Definitely a
trendsetter of jazz music in Zambia ready to surprise the unsuspecting
public with great talent. The shy, down to earth, friendly, soft-spoken
guitarist is ready to be explored.
Stage Name:
Uncle Rex
Real Name: Rex
Mukubonda
Age:
"Forty-something"
Marital Status:
Married with two lovely daughters Martha and Rachael.
His family and
educational background: The sixth son of a Zambia Railways mechanic
in a family of 10, Uncle Rex was born in Kabwe at Kabwe Central
Hospital. He concluded his junior school at Northrise Primary School in
Kabwe where he was in the same class with Kalusha Bwalya and later
proceeded to Chifubu in Ndola, where he completed his secondary
education.
Dream Collaborator: Carlos
Santana
About Uncle Rex's
Musical Background: Uncle Rex started embracing music within his
family at an early age whilst receiving guitar lessons from his dad and
brother J.J.
"I was always
playing the guitar (at home) and taking guitar lessons from my father
and brother J.J., who taught me how to hit certain cords and notes. We
are a musical family and always played guitars."
His professional
musical career started in Ndola 23 years ago with a band called Hotline,
which had a huge following due to their good shows. His first showbiz
gig was at the Falcon Hotel in Ndola.
"It was a disco
era. But instead of playing and listening to disco songs, we decided to
play jazz and that's what made us unique at the time because it was
different."
Rex later joined a band
called Master Q1, which was quite famous on the Copperbelt. His third
group was Lifasi (meaning "world" in Lozi). After he moved to
Lusaka in 1986, Rex formed a gospel group called Glory Singers, which
gained popularity in gospel music circles. After Glory Singers
disbanded, he went on to play with a band called Shine On, before
becoming a founder member of Reality.
This brought Rex to
national attention as the producer and composer of many of their gospel
hits. The group was backed and supported by Pastor Helmut Reuters, and
the released two successful albums.
In 2002, Rex decided to
go solo and concentrated on session work. He has recorded with some of
Zambia's leading artists including J.K., Marsha Moyo, Maureen Lilanda,
and Joe Chibangu.
Late 2003 saw him begin
recording his debut solo album, Fingerspeech, after signing a record
deal with Mondo Music.
Uncle Rex was fortunate
enough to share the same stage with American evangelist Bennie Hinn as
his guitarist during concerts throughout Lusaka and the Copperbelt. He
has also performed with Zambian music legends like Jagari Chanda of the
renowned 70's band, The W.I.T.C.H, as well as the late Paul Ngozi. Apart
from jazz, this multi-talented man also plays rock n' roll, blues and
heavy metal.
Favourite Guitars:
Uncle Rex is a complete guitarist. His favourite guitars are the Spanish
guitar and Gibson guitar.
Why Fingerspeech?
He believes he speaks through his fingers.
"I sing quite
alright except that I do it through my fingers, hence "Fingerspeech".
This is my first album in which I'm trying to talk about the love of God
for us, peace and freedom in the world.''
Future of Jazz music
in Zambia: "I want to introduce it to Zambians because it's
music that lasts."
Musical Credits:
A Ngoma awards 2002 winner, he has also won the AZAMI awards in 2002 and
2003. Rex was nominated as the most promising African artist for the
prestigious Kora African Music Awards in 2003, an award in its own
right.
Greatest desire:
To be the first Zambian to win a Grammy.
Now that 'The
Definitive Zambian Jazz Album' is finally here, there's no doubt that
Uncle Rex has delivered an international quality release with his
Fingerspeech. The pioneer in Zambian Jazz has put his own unique touch
to this long awaited album.
Courtesy
of Mondo Music
http://www.mondomusic.co.zm/artists/jk.htm
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