Gabriel Mabi Segwagwa reportedly suffered a stroke and passed on on 3 June 2021.
Known as the man who became The Drum, Segwagwa died aged 74.
A friend and collaborator, David Coplan recalls the artist s magnificence.
Winter chokes the highveld in Johannesburg, South Africa, and takes from me, from our entire culture, a mighty mountain. Gabriel Mabi Segwagwa Thobejane, the diminutive tower of rhythmic power, has left us: a man who did not so much play the drums, but became The Drum.
He reportedly suffered a stroke at the age of 74 and passed on 3 June 2021.
Even though he was both master and a creator of South Africa’s indigenous sonic archive, Mabi, as we all came to call him, was also a showman and a collaborator. He could and would play in support of almost anyone, from jazz musicians to poets to mainstream artists. He was artistically intimidated by nothing and no one.
Commemoration of the life of Jonas Musa Gwangwa
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Sam Ndlovu highlights the importance of indigenous language in new single La Bhembe
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Celebrated vocalist and instrumentalist Sam Ndlovu of the iconic band Stimela makes a return to the music scene with the release of his first solo single “La Bhembe”.
Written in Siswati, the song speaks of a love-hate kind of situation going on, with a twist of humour, between the two people in a relationship.
In conversation with Ndlovu, the legendary artist says, as a cultural ambassador, he’s celebrating the wealth of language, the importance of freedom of speech and most of all the use of our indigenous languages through his music.
We Will Rise is their first original song which debuted with their second album,
Rise, in July 2020. The choir aims to raise awareness about the plight of the arts and encourage people to support artists and performers, as well as arts organisations, during the COVID-19 pandemic with
Rise.
The music video for We Will Rise that was filmed at the Atterbury Theatre, in Pretoria, was released in February this year. Have a look:
RAPID-FIRE Q&A WITH SANDILE MAJOLA
The South African chatted to the Ndlovu Youth Choir’s choir master Sandile Majola about what makes him and the choir tick.
This was the project, begun 35 years ago in February, that resulted in the release of
Graceland, the album that saved Simon’s flagging career but also brought world acclaim for music from South Africa.
By no means ignorant of the horrors of apartheid, Simon appreciated the reasoning behind the cultural boycott, and had turned down invitations to perform at Sun City in what was then the Bophuthatswana “independent homeland”. Other famous musicians took up the invitation and came to play to white South African audiences who would never otherwise see world-class acts because of the cultural boycott. Many of these were blacklisted, including Queen, Rod Stewart, the Beach Boys, Frank Sinatra, Elton John and, crucially, Linda Ronstadt.
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