INTERROGATING MOSES SAKALA’S FUNERAL SONG, ‘CHOBABA’: SOME DISCOURSE INSIGHTS

Abstract

Funeral songs are a type of discourse commonly played or sung by Africans and Zambians in particular, to celebrate the memory of the dead. The songs could also be used to evoke emotive responses. ‘Chobaba’, is a typical Cinyanja funeral song composed and played by Moses Sakala, one of Zambia’s famous musician. This song was composed following the passing on of Levy Sakala, Moses’ once long-time music partner. The main aim of this study is to conduct a discourse analysis of Moses Sakala’s tribute song to his friend titled Chobaba ‘pain’ to show how language is constructed and represented to demonstrate pain, grief, and love. The study also aims at analysing how, by the same token, the song provides emotional release, honour the memory of the deceased, and offer comfort and support to the bereaved. Ultimately, the article demonstrates how funeral songs can capture the essence of the human experience of pain. The analysis identifies four themes, which include pain as a collective experience, pain as a personal struggle, the need for spiritual guidance, and hope and comfort. These themes provide insights into how human beings come to terms with pain resulting from death and how they are able to comfort themselves by invoking spiritual intervention in their experience with pain.