Rina Mushonga

Rina Mushonga

Rina Mushonga is a Dutch singer-songwriter and electronic/Afro-pop artist whose music combines electro-pop and synth-pop with African rhythms and a broad vocal style. Born in India and raised in Harare, Zimbabwe, she studies in the Netherlands before moving to Peckham in London, where her career gathers pace. She learns piano and guitar as a child and begins writing songs at an early age, drawing on influences including Paul Simon, Oliver Mtukudzi, Nina Simone and Fleetwood Mac.

Early work and debut album

She first performs at open-mike nights in Harare. Her debut album, The Wild, The Wilderness, is released in 2014 on Sony Music. It is recorded while she lives in the Netherlands and has a folk and rock orientation that reflects some of her early influences. Mushonga later feels that this work does not fully express her own artistic identity.

Move to London and later work

After moving to Peckham, she feels more able to explore her African heritage in her music. Her second album, In a Galaxy, is released on PIAS in 2019. It is described as a five-year project shaped while she balances music-making with work and caring for her young daughter. For the album she makes a demo with Frans Verburg in Rotterdam and records with Brett Shaw at his studio in Peckham.

In a Galaxy expands her sound into a kaleidoscopic mix of Afro-pop, indie and electronic elements, alongside light synth textures and tumbling rhythms.