Tanzanian Godzilla hip-hop artist dies, leaves many wondering whether he foresaw own end

What you need to know:

  • The hip-hop star passed away Wednesday, February 13 after suffering from what was reported as intense stomach upsets that caused him to vomit continuously.

Dar es Salaam. It is as if hip-hop artist Godzilla had a premonition of his death early before it even happened.

He was popularly known for his voice, which sounds much like that of American hip-hop legend 50 Cent, Godzilla passed away Wednesday morning, February 13 at his Salasala home.

It was a song about this suburb on the outskirts of Dar es Salaam that gave rise to his fame.

Godzilla’s sister Joyce Mbunda told Mwananchi that the Lakuchumpa hitmaker was suffering from something that had stuck in his stomach and which made him vomit. When he went to hospital for check-up, Godzilla, whose name is Golden Mbunda, was diagnosed with malaria, diabetes and blood pressure. That was Sunday, February 10.

This came one day after a series of tweets the hip-hop star posted on Twitter, on Saturday, February 9 that implied that all was not well with the man who had once engaged in a beef with a fellow hip-hop artist on Twitter, Wakazi.  

“I thought I was stupid,” said Zilla in one of his tweets. “Enough,” reads another. Earlier on Friday, February 8 he tweeted: “What have you accomplished if you die today, what [is] your (curse word) legacy?”

But on Monday, February 11, there were signs that Zilla, as he is commonly referred to, was recovering and was up for business as he tweeted, “back to work, been sick (curse word).” Zilla’s last tweets, however, showed a deterioration of the situation. He tweeted incomprehensive statements that are quite interpretable: “Mbo ham home. Dah,” was the first and “N no info ssheesh,” was as the last one.

Zilla’s body is preserved at the Lugalo Hospital waiting for further family procedures. Apart from Salasala and Lakuchumpa, Zilla also was known for his urban hip-hop hits like King Zilla, Kill Yourself where he featured with Nikki Mbishi and Cliff Mitindo, and Kila Siku (Everyday) where he was featured by Nikki Mbishi. Zilla is survived by a son.