bcuc - the journey

l8 antiqué - myamané

radio rats - z x dan

the safari suist - a south african in paris

lucky dube - the way it is

sixto rodriguez - sugar man

tunji & chris mcgregor - omonike (jika Records 1968)

mango groove - hellfire (no entró, comerciales)

dark city sisters - tap tap ntshebe

jazz pioneers- ten ten special (no entró)

prophets of da city - neva again

tumi and the volume - learning (hip hop)

soul brothers - mama ka sigonbile

sakhile - shumi (no entró)

elite swingsters - dinokza (cd "african jazz & Jjve - authentic selection of south african township swing classics from the 50s & 60s", 2000)

hog hoggidy hog - african son

prophets of da city, miembros: ready d, shaheen, ishmael, ramone, mark.

POC formed in late 80's. The group was extremely vocal against the apartheid regime, they had over 15 tracks banned on their cd released before the 1994 election. This track "Neva Again" was to celebrate the first democratic election in SA. Ready D is still the NUMBER 1 hip hop DJ in South Africa, he hosts a radio show on GOOD HOPE FM, Shaheen is studying his masters at Leeds University, Ishmael is in a group called JOZI and releases his solo projects as well, Ramone runs BBoys in Cape Town. Markie died tragecally in a car accident. It seemed post apartheid POC didnt have a voice anymore. POC were the main pioneers of hip hop in SA.

the brotherhood of breath was a big-band created in the late 1960s by south african pianist/composer chris mcgregor (1936-1990), essentially an extension of mcgregor's previous band The Blue Notes.

The Brotherhood of Breath included many members of the South African expatriate community resident in London, including McGregor himself, Louis Moholo, Harry Miller, Mongezi Feza, Dudu Pukwana, (occasionally) Johnny Dyani; and many of the free jazz musicians who were based in London at the same time: Lol Coxhill, Evan Parker, Paul Rutherford, Harry Beckett, Marc Charig, Alan Skidmore, Mike Osborne, Elton Dean, Nick Evans, and John Surman. The personnel was fluid, depending on who was available. The music resembles a mixture of the hard-driving blues of Charles Mingus and the wild experimentalism of Sun Ra, but retains a unique feel due to the South African influences and the intelligent arrangements.

The original Brotherhood Of Breath ended in the late 70's, with the deaths of Mongezi Feza and Harry Miller (whose label, Ogun Records, released some of the Brotherhood's albums.) McGregor formed a second version of the group in France in the early 80's. In 1987, a third edition was formed with African and British musicians such as Annie Whitehead. In this incarnation the music was more tightly arranged and controlled, with less free improvisation.

dark city sisters was a South African female vocal group formed in 1958 by music producer rupert bopape. they recorded several hit records during the 1960s, helping usher in the mbaqanga style of South African music later brought to global prominence by the Mahotella Queens.

the Sisters were formed by bopape, also a talent scout, at EMI South Africa. the group was named after Alexandra Township, known at the time as 'Dark City' due to its lack of street lighting. The four founding members were Joyce Mogatusi, Francisca Mngomezulu, Hilda Mogapi and Esther Khoza. Their close harmonies were often combined with a single male vocalist, at a time when most bands consisted of a female lead backed up by a group of men. In their early days they were fronted by vocalist Jack Lerole and later by Simon 'Mahlathini' Nkabinde.Their backing band was Alexandra Black Mambazo.

The new style of the Dark City Sisters proved very popular and they enjoyed several hits during the 1960s, also touring South Africa and neighbouring countries. membership changed frequently, with group vocalists such as Francisca Mngomezulu and Caroline Kapentar later singing for the Mahotella Queens. lead singer Joyce Mogatusi remained the only consistent link throughout the Dark City Sisters line-up. The second-longest serving member of the group was Grace Moeketsi, who sang with the Sisters from 1960.

The group dissolved in 1971 for a short time before reforming in the middle 1970s, primarily as a live performing group although contracted at various points to Gallo-Mavuthela, EMI and CCP. The 1980s was a decade in which very few recordings of new material were made, with most of their time taken up by concert performances. by the 1990s and early 2000s, following the explosion of international interest in South African music, the Sisters were fully immersed in concert appearances in the country and continued to make one-off recordings. in July 2012, group leader Joyce Mogatusi died from heart failure at the age of 75. She had been a part of the Dark City Sisters for 53 years.

aquí tenéis un directorio con biografías de casi 200 música/os y bandas sudafricanas (en inglés)

The Soul Brothers (l-r) Moses Ngwenya, David Masondo and Zakes Mchunu. © Steve Gordon

soul brothers

Women’s Day: remembering 9th August 1956

Posted by mzansigirl On August 9th, 2012 / No Comments

Womens Day march

9 August commemorates Women’s Day in South Africa. On this day in 1956, over 20 000 women of all races marched to the Union Buildings in Pretoria, to hand over a petition against pass laws. This apartheid legislation required African persons to carry the “pass”, special identification documents which curtailed their freedom of movement.

The march was organised by the Federation of South African Women (FEDSAW), a federation committed to challenging the idea that ‘a woman’s place is in the kitchen’, declaring it instead to be ‘everywhere. The leaders of the march Sophia Williams-De Bruyn, Lilian Ngoyi, Rahima Moosa and Helen Joseph. The women filled the entire amphitheatre outside the Union Bulidings.

women's day

In her book, Women and Resistance in South Africa, Cheryl Walker describes the scene:

Many of the African women wore traditional dress, others wore the Congress colours, green, black and gold; Indian women were clothed in white saris. Many women had babies on their backs and some domestic workers brought their white employers’ children along with them. Throughout the demonstration the huge crowd displayed a discipline and dignity that was deeply impressive (Walker, 1991: 195).

Over 100 000 signatures marked a number of petitions which were left with the prime minister at the time, J.G. Stijdom. After the petition was handed over they marched and sang Wathint’Abafazi Wathint’imbokodo meaning ‘Now you have touched the women, you have struck a rock’.

You strike a woman you strike a rock

Since then, the phrase ’wathint’ abafazi, wathint’ imbokodo’ - You Strike a Woman, You Strike a Rock – has come to represent the courage and strength of South African women.

Women's Day

Women's March

poster from the Apartheid Museum

To learn more about the Women’s March and the history of Women’s Day, check out SA history online.

Faith 47, one of my favourite South African graffiti artists, gives a contemporary take on Women’s Day which I love. There are still many issues that South African women have to face. Apartheid may be history, but inequality, poverty, rape and a patriarchal society are just some of the issues women have to deal with. Wathint’Abafazi Wathint’imbokodo.

You strike a woman you strike a rock Faith 47

To all South African women, Happy Women’s Day!