Mbaqanga
latest news & developments
The bassists who built Soweto’s distinct sound
The story of South African jazz-fusion is incomplete without the bassists whose innovations quietly carried the music forward
Award-winning artist Thandiswa Mazwai brings ‘A Letter To Azania’ to Cape Town
Stunning show is a sonic exploration of a note written by the musician to the land of freedom centred around love and words
State of emergency: The rise and the alchemy of the people’s hit
South African artists found a musical identity and a way to code political messages in the anxious 80s
Bheki Mseleku: An activist on his own terms
Steve Dyer reflects on jazz musician Bheki Mseleku’s contribution to the canon
Dodging the sjambok: How musicians got around apartheid’s laws
The country was a very strange world, but artists, audiences and record companies found ways to get their sound out there