Jimmy Cliff, umwe mu bahanzi ba Reggae na Rock and Roll bamamaye kw’isi yapfuye, ku myaka 81.
Kuva mu myaka ya 1960 Cliff yafashije kugeza umuziki wa Jamaica ku bantu benshi kw’isi mu ndirimbo ze zakunzwe cyane nka Wonderful World, Beautiful People na You Can Get It If You Really Want.
Yinjiye kandi muri cinema aho yabaye umukinnyi w’ibanze muri film bise ’The Harder They Come’, filimi bivugwa ko ari yo yagejeje muzika ya Reggae muri Amerika.
Umugore we, Latifa Chambers, yatangaje urupfu rw’umugabo we abicishije kuri Instagram.
Yanditse ati: "Ni n’umubabaro mwinshi kubagezaho ko umugabo wanjye, Jimmy Cliff, yambutse (yapfuye) kubera indwara ya ’seizure’ yakurikiwe n’ibihaha".
"Ndashimira umuryango we, inshuti, abahanzi n’abakorana na we basangiye urugendo rw’ubuzima.
"Ku bafana be hose kw’isi, rwose mumenye ko kumushyigikira kwanyu ari zo zari imbaraga ze mu rugendo rwe rwose.
Yongeraho ati: "Jimmy, mukunzi wanjye, uruhukire mu mahoro. Nzakurikiza ibyifuzo byawe".
Ubu butumwa bwe kandi bwashyizweho umukono n’abana babo, Lilty na Aken.
Amazina yiswe n’ababyeyi akivuka mu 1948 ni James Chambers, Cliff yari umwana wa munani mu bana icyenda bavukaga mu muryango ukennye muri paruwasi ya St James muri Jamaica.
Yakuranye impano y’ijwi ry’igitangaza atangira kuririmba mu rusengero rw’aho iwabo afite imyaka itandatu gusa.
Ku myaka 14 yimukiye mu murwa mukuru Kingston maze afata izina rya Cliff mu gusobanura imanga ndende yifuzaga kuzamuka akavamo.
Yakoze indirimbo nyinshi mbere y’uko amenyekana muri Jamaica kubera indirimbo yise Hurricane Hattie, izina ry’inkubi y’umuyaga yishe abantu barenga 300, benshi kugeza ubu mu mateka y’iki kirwa bishwe n’inkubi y’umuyaga uvanze n’imvura.
Mu 1965, yimukiye i London gukorana n’inzu ya muzika ya Island Records – nyuma yaje no kuzamo Bob Marley – ariko mu ntango iyi nzu ntiyabashije gutuma umuziki we ukundwa.
Mu 1969 nibwo yabigezeho n’indirimbo ze Wonderful World, I Can See Clearly Now, Beautiful People n’izindi nk’iyo yise Vietnam - iyi ndirimbo undi muhanzi w’icyamamare Bob Dylan yavuze ko ari yo "ndirimbo yanditse neza kurusha izindi zose y’amagambo yo kwigaragambya".
Indirimbo ye ’The Harder They Come’ igendanye na ya cinema yakinnye, na yo yaramamaye henshi kw’isi. Igaruka ku muhanzi wari ukiri muto warwanaga no kugira aho agera mu ruganda rwa muzika muri Jamaica rwamunzwe na ruswa.
Albums ze Cliff Hanger (1985) na Rebirth (2012) zahawe ibihembo bya Grammy. Mu 2010 Cliff yashyizwe mu rwego rwa Hall of Fame (urwego rw’ibyamamare by’ikirenga) mu njyana ya Rock and Roll.
BBC
