Brief Biography
of
Siti Binti Saad
by
Let me tell you how I became interested in this intriguing woman. I remember first hearing about Siti in the 1980's. In 1987, I really took notice, that's when the Tanzania Media Women's Association (TAMWA) named their magazine Sauti ya Siti (Siti's Voice). The first issue had a picture of Siti on the cover and a piece about her inside. She was the great communicator of her time. A poor woman who beat the incredible odds and became a voice to the voiceless. I remember a lot of people laughed at the tribute. They thought the magazine had really been named after then First Lady Siti Mwinyi.
All the controversy sparked my interest in this woman. Then one day, Radio Tanzania played one of her songs. The song was scratchy and grainy, you could tell that it was very old. The strange thing was that everyone became quiet and listened. I asked is that really the Siti binti Saad singing. An old man nodded and didn't say a word. That was when I knew that Siti Binti Saad was indeed a great woman.
So who was Siti? Who was this great woman who has been compared to the legendary Egyptian singer, Umm Kulthum and Lata Mangeshkar of India? Well, there are no records on exactly when Siti was actually born. She was said to be born in 1880 in Fumba fishing village on the island of Zanzibar. Her real name was Mtumwa binti Sadi. She was born into a poor family. Her parents were Mr. Sadi Mussa and her mother was Bibi Mrashi. She was an only child to her mother, but she had other five other younger siblings by another of her father's wives. Her mother made cooking pots from clay and sold them to earn the family some money. Siti learned how to do the same. She also wove mats and plaited hair.
Siti married one Rajab Khamis and they had one daughter Kijakazi. The marriage was short lived and Siti returned to the village with her daughter. Siti continued making pots and she would take them to Zanizbar town to sell them. She didn't earn much from that, she always walked to town balancing the pots on her head. Siti would walk through the streets of Zanzibar singing. Her singing helped her sell the pots. siti did this for a while and soon her daughter was helping in the business.
It's said that one day, Siti tripped and fell and broke all her pots. She returned home empty handed with no money. That's when she decided to move to Zanzibar town, settling in the Ng'ambo neighborhood. The area was an unplanned area settled by Africans. The city was home to wealthy Arabs, Indians and Whites.
When she moved to town she married one Khamis Marine from Kisauni village. The couple lived on a street called Kwa Bi Jokha. Siti and Marine divorced and then Siti moved to Vikokotoni area in Mwembetanga.
Siti continued to sing. She had a gift of being able to memorize songs quickly. Siti did not know how to read, so memorizing things was improtant. Neighbors would sit outside listening. Most taarab of the time was sung in Arabic. Siti revolutionized it and brought it to her people by singing in Swahili.
Older people have told me that Siti used to sing for the Sultan in his palace. They said she would sit behind a screen and sing. They also said that for a long time Siti would sing with her face draped in a veil. Why? because for some reason she thought that she was ugly. From the pictures, that I have seen Siti was not ugly! Then again at that time, women probably had to cover as much of themselves as possible in public to avoid being labled a prostitute.
Siti got a a recording contract and went to India in the 1930's to record. A studio was also built in Zanzibar just for Siti. At the peak of her popularity, Siti sang songs with political messages. Her songs touched many topics. They talked about oppressive landlords, crime, class, love, marriage and so much more.
It's said that Siti began suffering from fevers. She was ill for a few months. During that time the late writer/poet Shabaan Robert visited her. The day Mr. Robert paid her a visit Siti went to a photographer and they took a picture together. Mr. Robert promised to return to Zanzibar so that he could talk to Siti more and learn more details of her life. Alas, that was not to be as Siti passed away on the evening of July 8th, 1950. She was laid to rest the next day. Mr Robert wrote a book 'Wasifu wa Siti Binti Saad' (In Praise of Siti binti Saad). Her legacy lives on in the many Taarab groups and through living legend, Bi Kidude.
Stone Town
