Ladysmith Black Mambazo is a male choral group from South Africa that sings in the vocal style of isicathamiya and mbube. They rose to worldwide prominence as a result of singing with Paul Simon on his album, Graceland and have won multiple awards, including three Grammy Awards. They were formed by Joseph Shabalala in 1960 and became one of South Africa’s most prolific recording artists, with their releases receiving gold and platinum disc honours.The group has now become a mobile academy, teaching people about South Africa and its culture.
Joseph Shabalala formed Ladysmith Black Mambazo because of a series of dreams he had in 1964, in which he heard certain isicathamiya harmonies (isicathamiya being the traditional music of the Zulu people). Following their local success at wedding ceremonies and other gatherings, Shabalala entered them into isicathamiya competitions. The group was described as ‘so good’ that they were eventually forbidden to enter the competitions, but welcomed to entertain at them.Although they had been recognised as an isicathamiya group in 1964, they had been singing together since the early 1950s. They released their first album, Amabutho, in 1973. The album, along with many other releases by the group, received gold disc certification. Ladysmith Black Mambazo’s collaboration with Paul Simon in 1986 paved the way for international releases, making them widely known across the world.
1960-1986
The first incarnation of Ladysmith Black Mambazo was “Ezimnyama” (“The Black Ones”), formed by Shabalala in December 1960. The members of the group were relatives (mostly brothers and cousins) of Shabalala, with many having sung with him while he was growing up on the farm where he was born. Although the group did sing well together and captured the sound of cothoza mfana (tip toe boys, a 1960s slang term for isicathamiya) and mbube groups of the time, they were unknown outside of the Ladysmith district.
In 1964, Shabalala had a series of recurring dreams during his sleep, over a period of six months, featuring a choir singing in perfect harmony.Shabalala described this as a beautiful sound, and one not yet achieved by his group at the time. As a result, he reformed the group as Ladysmith Black Mambazo and strived to teach them the harmonies from his dream. Shabalala invented the name from the hometown of his family, Ladysmith, KwaZulu-Natal; the black ox, considered to be the strongest farm animal; and mambazo, which means axe in the Zulu language, and is symbolic of the choir’s ability to “chop down” the competition. Shabalala entered the group into isicathamiya competitions, held on Saturday nights in areas of Durban and Johannesburg. The group won nearly every competition that was held; eventually, by 1973, they were forbidden to compete with the other choirs. They were, however, welcome to perform without taking part in the competition itself.
In 1967, the group began to make recordings for Radio Zulu, and then signed with producer West Nkosi in 1972 at Gallo Record Company (Nkosi was also well-known in South Africa as a saxophonist in Gallo’s African music division Mavuthela Music Company). Ladysmith Black Mambazo released their first album the following year, Amabutho, which received gold status and was the first album by a black musician or group in South Africa to do so. Their subsequent albums also received gold or platinum certification.[7] With the release of their second album, they had become professional singers.
In 1975, Shabalala converted to Christianity. The group released their first religious album, Ukukhanya Kwelanga, not long afterwards. It earned a double platinum disc award, and the group’s repertoire came to be dominated by hymns, mostly Methodist. Their 1976 LP Ukusindiswa became one of their most popular religious albums, selling double gold discs within three weeks of release. By 1981, the group’s popularity was such that the apartheid government allowed the members to travel to Cologne, Germany as part of a Southern African music festival. The group toured West Germany and appeared on television, and learned some of the German language; for the group’s 1981 album Phansi Emgodini, Shabalala composed a song titled “Wir Grüssen Euch Alle”. The following year, the group traveled back to Germany to appear on a televised quiz programme, bringing about requests for more live appearances. A track by the group also appeared on the groundbreaking British compilation album The Indestructible Beat of Soweto.
1986-1993
In 1985, Paul Simon traveled to South Africa in the hope of collaborating with African musicians for his Graceland album. Simon contacted Shabalala and conversed with him in person – after much discussion and excitement, the group traveled to London to record with Simon. The first recording was “Homeless” – the music and chorus were composed by Simon, with Shabalala composing the Zulu introduction and main (non-English) body of the song (incidentally, Ladysmith Black Mambazo’s 1986 album Ezulwini Siyakhona refers to the encounter with Paul Simon in the liner notes). Graceland was released in late 1986, and although both Joseph Shabalala and Paul Simon were accused of breaking the cultural boycott of South Africa, the album became a huge success and sold 16 million copies and further boosted Ladysmith Black Mambazo’s international image. This also paved the way for other African acts like Stimela and Mahlathini and the Mahotella Queens to gain popularity amongst Western audiences.
After Graceland, Simon acted as producer on three records for the group aimed at the American market, Shaka Zulu (1987), Journey of Dreams (1988) and Two Worlds, One Heart (1990). On the latter album, the group recorded with The Winans, Julia Fordham and George Clinton among other then-popular artists.
In 1988, Ladysmith Black Mambazo appeared in Michael Jackson’s movie Moonwalker, where they performed “The Moon Is Walking” (an abridged version of the song “Lindelani”, which appears on Journey of Dreams) over the end credits. Ladysmith Black Mambazo was also featured in the Sesame Street song “Put Down The Duckie”.
On 10 December 1991, Shabalala’s brother and one of the bass members in the group, Headman Shabalala, were shot and killed by Sean Nicholas, a white off-duty security guard. Paul Simon, who believed the killing to be racially motivated, led the court proceedings against Nicholas.Joseph Shabalala stopped singing. Eventually, aided by his Christian beliefs, he returned to singing. Following the retirement of three more members in 1993, Shabalala recruited four of his sons into the group.
1993–2002
The Apartheid system was abolished in 1991. The release of Nelson Mandela after 27 years imprisonment brought a celebratory album release – 1993′s Liph’ Iqiniso. The album’s last track, “Isikifil’ Inkululeko” (“Freedom Has Arrived”), was a celebration of the end of Apartheid.
According to Shabalala, Nelson Mandela (shortly after his release from prison) publicly stated that the members of Ladysmith Black Mambazo were “South Africa’s cultural ambassadors”.[16] Ladysmith Black Mambazo accompanied the future President of South Africa to the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony in Oslo, Norway at the request of Nelson Mandela, in 1993. Mambazo sang again at President Mandela’s inauguration in May 1994, and then later at his birthday celebrations.
In 1997, for a series of television advertisements entitled “Toast for Life” for Heinz soups, baked beans, salad cream, and tomato ketchup, the group recorded an abridged version of “Inkanyezi Nezazi” (“The Star and the Wiseman”). The adverts proved so popular that the original studio version (recorded back in 1992) was released as a single, with the cover art imitating the label on a tin of Heinz Baked Beans; the single reached #2 in the UK Pop Charts. The single was followed up by The Best of Ladysmith Black Mambazo – The Star and the Wiseman in 1998, a compilation release which became so popular that it was certified triple platinum, selling 1 million copies in Britain alone.
The Heinz campaign led to a reawakening of the group in Britain, and many television and radio performances beckoned over the next few years, as well as performing for the British royal family. In 2001, the group was referenced in the Family Guy episode Lethal Weapons.
2002-2006
As a follow-up to the traditional release Lihl’ Ixhiba Likagogo in 2000, the group began preparations for Wenyukela, another album of new material, in 2002. However, the making of the record underwent severe strain when, in May 2002, Shabalala’s wife Nellie of thirty years (and lead singer in the allied group “Women of Mambazo”), was murdered in a church car park by a masked gunman. Shabalala’s hand was injured trying to protect his wife. Joseph’s son Vivian Nkosinathi was accused of hiring a hitman to murder his stepmother Nellie. During the court trial, Nkosinathi supposedly testified that the South African police offered some kind of reprieve if he would implicate his own father, Joseph, in the murder.
Wenyukela, however, went ahead, as Shabalala began to recover. Songs such as “Wenza Ngani?” (“How Did You Do That?”) had a moral theme, such as racism. Others included “Fak’ Ibhande” (“Don’t Drink and Drive”), which warned of the dangers of alcohol and driving; “Wenyukela”, which spoke of the resurrection of Jesus and how South Africans were nearly misled into killing each other during the 1994 elections; and “Selingelethu Sonke”, a song asking for fair trade in Africa. The group had originally spoken of the issue of fair trade in the Oxfam campaign Make Trade Fair. They appeared as guests in “The Big Noise”, a worldwide petition for fair trade.
The success of Wenyukela in South Africa prompted its release in Britain in March 2003 on Wrasse Records. Following the repeated success of the album, the American-based Heads Up International released the album in January 2004. In addition to the standard version, Heads Up released the album in the Hybrid SACD format. The US release reportedly went platinum and it garnered the group their second Grammy Award. They also embarked on a three month tour of the United States.
The group signed to Heads Up (in America; they remained with Gallo in South Africa) with their 2005 release, No Boundaries, a collaboration with the English Chamber Orchestra which featured many classical standards (Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring, Ave Verum Corpus) and Mambazo tunes (Homeless, Awu, Wemadoda, Ngingenwe Emoyeni). Despite initial worry about merging European traditions and Zulu folklore, the album sold very well and was nominated for a Grammy Award.
2006–2008
Long Walk to Freedom, a celebration of 45 years of Ladysmith Black Mambazo, was released by the group on 24 January 2006. On the album (which also celebrated the 20th anniversary of Graceland), the group recorded with a multitude of artists including Zap Mama, Sarah McLachlan, Melissa Etheridge, Joe McBride, Natalie Merchant, Emmylou Harris, and Taj Mahal as well as South African musicians Lucky Dube, Phuzekhemisi, Bhekumuzi Luthuli, Nokukhanya, Thandiswa, Vusi Mahlasela and Hugh Masekela. Ladysmith Black Mambazo also expressed wishes to work with Paul Simon once more, twenty years on since Graceland.
To support the promotion of the album and tour, Mambazo appeared on various television and radio programmes throughout January and February 2006. The group also started a street team; this is currently exclusive to fans in the US and Canada.
In April 2006, Mambazo collaborated with Josh Groban for his third studio album, Awake. The songs, “Weeping” and “Lullaby”, featured a clear South African influence; lines from a Mambazo song, “Wangibambezela” (“Message from his Heart”) were added to the backing track of “Weeping”. Following this, in August 2006, Mambazo began working with Mavis Staples in a collaboration for Staples’s new album. Whilst Mambazo toured the United States, the television program Saturday Night Live parodied the group in a TV Funhouse sketch, hosted by Dennis Haysbert, about failed Saturday morning cartoons starring black cartoon characters, one of which was a cartoon featuring the group called, Ladysmith Black Mambazo in Outer Space. Members of the group added commentary to the short for the DVD release of the SNL special, “The Best of TV Funhouse”.
On October 17, 2006,Ladysmith Black Mambazo performed a special concert, Long Walk to Freedom: An Evening with Ladysmith Black Mambazo. The night included special guest appearances by Sarah McLachlan, Natalie Merchant, Mahotella Queens, Vusi Mahlasela, and Pete Seeger. In preparation for the show, the Mahotella Queens performed a special a cappella concert the previous night (October 16) in New York.
For Bob Sinclar’s third Africanism mix album, a sampled version of Ladysmith Black Mambazo’s song “Isala Kutshelwa” (1985) was used in the song “Steel Storm”. Ladysmith Black Mambazo was again nominated for two Grammy Awards in the 49th Annual Grammy Awards in 2007, for their album Long Walk to Freedom. The album was nominated in the categories Best Contemporary World Music Album and Best Surround Sound Production, but did not win.
Ladysmith Black Mambazo’s 2007 album, Ilembe, was released on February 26, 2007. It was released in South Africa initially, and issued in the United Kingdom on the Warner Jazz label on April 2, 2007 (under the title Ilembe – Our Tribute to King Shaka). The album featured new recordings such as “Ommu Beno Mmu” (“Somebody And Somebody”), “Sizobalanda” (“We Are Here”) and “Iphel’ Emasini” (“A Cockroach In The Milk” – Zulu proverb). The album was released in the United States on January 22, 2008, under the title Ilembe: Honoring Shaka Zulu, on Heads Up International.
Ladysmith Black Mambazo’s 2007 release, Ilembe, garnered success on both sides of the world. In 2008 the group won the SAMA Award for Best Traditional A Cappella Album for Ilembe, and it was announced in November 2008 that the US Surround sound version of the album was nominated for Best Traditional World Music Album in the 2009 Grammy Awards, marking their 13th Grammy nomination. The group won this award – their third Grammy – in the ceremony held on 8 February, 2009.
In September 2008, Mambazo in collaboration with the SABC Choir released My Dream – African Sounds, an album featuring the two choirs performing each other’s songs, as well as singing together. Songs included are “Plea for Africa”, original Mambazo tunes “Shintsha Sithothobala” and “Angimboni Ofana Naye”, as well as new compositions like “Buya Lindiwe” and “Okuhle Hle”.
Awards
1981 SARIE Award Best Choral Group on Disc
1988 Grammy Award Best Traditional Folk Recording Shaka Zulu
1993 Drama Desk Award Outstanding Music in a Play The Song of Jacob Zulu (stage)
1996 Drama Desk Award Best Original Music Score Nomathemba (stage)
1997 SAMA Award Best Zulu Music Album Ukuzala-Ukuzelula
1997 SAMA Award Best Duo or Group Award Ukuzala-Ukuzelula
2001 SAMA Award Best Zulu Music Album Lihl’ Ixhiba Likagogo
2005 Grammy Award Best Traditional World Music Album Raise Your Spirit Higher
2008 SAMA Award Best Traditional A Cappella Album Ilembe
2009 Grammy Award Best Traditional World Music Album Ilembe: Honoring Shaka Zulu
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