No. 066 - WITCH’s “Mashed Potatoe” changed my life
The 70s Zamrock song that Mwandwe Chileshe didn't believe was real
This Song Changed My Life is an independent music publication featuring essays from people all around the world about the songs that mean the most to them. Created by Grace Lilly, supported by readers.
• 4 min read •
I’d heard the song before I'd ever really heard it. So here goes the story…
I'm 5 years old, and my mom talks animatedly about a time in her youth, jiving and dancing to melodic tunes. She speaks of a legendary man called Jagari Chanda. Jagari? A legend who jumps from one end of the stage to the other. Then she sings the song. And the song she sings goes, “Mashed potato! An do the Shingaari! Wan do the Bugaro! One time! Huh! Two time! Huh huh!”
Surely, it cannot be a real song!
For most of my childhood, I remain intrigued by this song that isn't a song — a song I thought my mom had made up to try and show how bright and youthful my parents and their friends all were at some point, how they jived and danced to legendary bands.
“Mashed Potatoe” became the backing track of my childhood, conjuring visions of what adulthood looked like, what it meant to feel joy, to have fun, and to revel in the company of friends.
It's an odd day, nothing spectacular is happening. Now I’m 9 going on 10 years old. We're now living on a farm on the outskirts of my childhood town, Kabwe. The radio is playing, the sun is casting a golden hue, and then I hear it.
“Mashed potato! One time! Huh!”
My heart skips a beat, and I bolt over to the radio, my tiny feet pounding against the floor. That's the song! It actually is a real song! It exists!
These were the days before YouTube or Spotify, when you couldn't just look up a song instantaneously. Music wasn't on demand. So in this moment it’s more than just a melody — it’s a song come alive, a bridge to my mother's youth, to a world where my parents were not just parents but vibrant, dancing figures with dreams and stories of their own.
When I started to write this essay, I wandered through the corridors of my musical memory, exploring a long list of tunes that colored different chapters of my journey. I found myself back in 2009, the year we wished things would stay the same but instead everything changed. We were no longer just listening to Jay-Z, as J. Cole came to play. We clung to the closeness of our youth, even as friends started having babies, big sis went through changes, and we navigated the complexities of leaving high school behind.
I reminisced about the stuff my dreams were made of, in the midst of calamity and grief, in the Saharan deserts of life and children's happy faces and a sip of tap water. In the space between then and now, I sought answers and found new questions, each song a milestone. “Lost in the Light,” with its haunting beauty, playing as a wonderful scene unfolds — it's Dakota Fanning, it's a bicycle, it's a blonde boy, it's blue eyes.
I thought of those fleeting moments of magic, about nights that rarely happen, if ever. Every piece of me surrendering, every part of me resisting. “Work Song” brought back images of the Kinjaz, their bodies bending and twisting to Hozier's melody. My mind raced to “Far From Easy,” Jozi's anthem about what it means to go from one point in your life to another. It made me think of Macklemore and “Growing up” and about “These Days,” which we will always remember. But. It all came back to We Intend To Cause Havoc.
Recently, as an adult, I find myself engrossed in a documentary about the band WITCH and the vibrant Zambian musical era of "Zamrock." And the nostalgia washes over me as my sister, my nephew and I, attend a concert featuring the only surviving member of the band, Jagari. I can't help but smile at the idea of the legendary song "Mashed Potatoe" coming to life once more, connecting past and present in a beautiful, full-circle moment.
“Mashed Potatoe.” I knew the song before I ever heard it.
It's joy.
It’s sugar and a slice of happier times.
It’s memories of family.
As the staccato starts, as the drums kick in, “Will you? Over there! An do the Shingaari?” ◆
Categories
Friendship • Family • Coming of Age • Romance • Grief • Spirituality & Religion • Personal Development
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About Mwandwe
Mwandwe Chileshe is an avid sketch artist and proud pencil hoarder, often lost in nostalgic tunes that fuel her artistic spirit. Balancing her love for art with a deep dedication to global causes, she is a passionate international development expert who skillfully blends creativity with advocacy. With an impactful career in food security and poverty reduction, Mwandwe brings a unique combination of imagination and commitment to everything she undertakes.
Instagram @mwandwe16_art
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What a great essay!! What a great testament to music and memory and how it intertwines with your life. I need to look up this song!
So glad I got a chance to write this! Opened up the best of conversations and another way that this song continues to be an absolute gem in my life! The timing couldn’t have been more perfect with the resurgence of Zamrock ❤️ thanks Grace!