RIDING on a crest of a wave following the release of her single Makandinakira this week which features renowned gospel artist, Amos Mahendere, Rebecca Manford (RM) has introduced herself with a five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style which will stand the test of time if this single is anything to go by. She speaks with The Daily News (DN) about this project and more.
DN: Congratulation on your new single, how did you team up with Amos Mahendere?
RM: Thank you very much. I am so excited to put this project out to the people and body of Christ. I have always been a fan of Father Amos Mahendere and when we met we immediately became good friends. He also listened to my material and loved it so it made it very easy, in fact I never then hesitated to ask him to be part of my project, which he also accepted graciously without hesitation.
DN: And the writing of the song, take us through the journey, was it joint or you combined what each had written before?
RM: My team and I already had the concept and to our surprise when Father Mahendere wrote his verse, he brought in the Nyanja and Chewa part which received postive feedback from listeners as many people can identify with the song and feel included.
DN: What inspired you to come up with such a powerful uplifting song?
RM: My life is a testimony. In the song I sing “they said I would never be somebody in life” and that’s my story. Many people looked down upon me and said such negative things upon my life but God fought for me and has used me in many ways that I am so humbled by. 
DN: Many artist release songs but take many months or years to have a video, some don’t even, with you it was different, what was so special about this project?
RM: It is grace. I think when the time is right the Lord simply makes it happen. When we started this project I didn’t know where it would go but everything we needed up to the point of shooting the video came together. I am grateful to everyone who was a part of making it happen.
DN: Is this single going to be followed up by an album?
RM: Yes. An album is in the works and we are working tirelessly to give the listeners a good product and something that will truly glorify our Father in Heaven.
DN: On this project who would you most like to collaborate with?
RM: I will not divulge as yet, but I promise you that the next project is going to be equally ‘fire’ and an unexpected collaboration. There are also some peers in the industry whom I respect and have been very supportive and I also hope to work with them in future. Pastor Gee, Tembalami, Tinashe Nyamukapa, only to mention a few.
DN: You are multi-talent – a successful executive, motivational speaker, model singer, what else can you tell us about yourself?
RM: Firstly, thank you for that compliment. I feel truly blessed that God has given me the opportunity to be and to do many different things. It’s not easy being CFO of a multi-million-dollar company and chasing the gospel and balancing all that with everything else. One thing though that is very important to me is empowering women, the girl child and young people in general. I spend a lot of my time giving back, speaking on different platforms and initiating charitable drives such as sanitary pads for females, which I have done for many years.
RM: Who inspired you to make music?
DN: It is a calling. From a very young age I was making noise for my family. I am that child who was always singing. I sang in a youth band at church for a while and my inspiration has been Pastor Bonnie Deuschle whose ministry revolves around Isaiah 43:21 ‘the people whom I formed for myself shall declare my praise’. So I am just basically being obedient to my calling.
DN: How would you describe the music that you typically create?
RM: Most of the songs I write and sing are inspired by my own experiences and sometimes situations I have seen people close to me going through. I would then describe the music as ‘Life music’.
DN: What is your creative process like?
RM: Honestly I never actually sit down and say ‘today I’m writing a song’. Choruses usually come to me randomly like maybe I am taking a shower or taking a walk or I am in a prayer zone and my prayer translates into the lyrics and melody of a song.
DN: If you could go open a show for any artist who would it be?
RM: That’s a very hard question because I admire plenty of artists. Our own Zimbabwe is so rich with talented gospel musicians, opening for any of them would be an honour. Internationally Cece Winans has always been one of my favourites and it would be more than a dream come true.
DN: How do you feel the internet has impacted the music business?
RM: The internet has provided us with a platform to reach more people than we could in the past. In my day compact discs and cassettes were the only way that music could be spread. I particularly am very active on my social media as it gives me an easy way to carry out the great commission which is ‘go ye out into the world and preach the good news”
DN: What is the best advice you’ve been given about the music industry?
RM: The best advice I have been given is to be authentic and remain grounded. It is very easy to get pressure from social media and forget why I am doing what I am doing. The primary reason is to glorify the name of God, so everything I do should be aligned to that.
DN: What’s next for you?
RM: We have so much in store. Lookout for more singles from Rebecca Manford and in God’s time we will deliver the full album. I also hope that I will be able to partner with corporates and well-wishers alike to make music that inspires women and the girl child and young people to highlight issues we face in our society such as child marriages, gender-based violence and the fight against drug abuse. It is our role as artists to use the platform we have not only to entertain but to educate and create awareness of such issues.