Ladysmith Black Mambazo is a South African group of a cappella (unaccompanied) male singers, founded by Joseph Shabalala. Ladysmith Black Mambazo has achieved international recognition for its traditional South African vocal music, particularly a type of music called isicathimiya or cothoza mfana in isiZulu, the language of the Zulu people. Isicathimiya is a traditional South African choral song with an a cappella call-and-response vocal style involving three- or four-part harmony. Cothoza mfana is a similar smooth style of South African harmony that preceded isicathimiya. The group’s name means “The Black Ax of Ladysmith,” the isiZulu word mambazo (ax) being a symbol of the group’s skill at virtually “chopping down” the other entrants in musical competitions.
The group was started by Joseph Shabalala in the 1960’s. Shabalala was born in Ladysmith, in the Emnambithi district in what is now KwaZulu-Natal . He migrated to Durban in the mid-1950’s to find work and began singing with a well-known group, the Highlanders. Shabalala returned to Ladysmith in 1958 and formed his own group of isicathimiya singers, the Durban Choir, composed mainly of his brothers and cousins. They soon became the most successful isicathimiya group in the Durban area, winning competitions and music prizes. In the mid-1960’s, the group changed its name to Ezimnyama (The Black Ones), and later to its current name. By the 1990’s, Ladysmith Black Mambazo included four of Shabalala’s sons.
In 1970, Ladysmith Black Mambazo appeared on Radio Zulu, and soon after the group received a recording contract. They made 25 albums, which were hugely successful in Africa. It was not until 1986 that their work became known to a wider audience, when they worked with the well-known American popular singer Paul Simon . Simon’s album Graceland (1986), recorded in South Africa, features musical collaborations with the group. Since then, Ladysmith Black Mambazo has achieved enormous international success, performing to huge audiences around the world and recording many more albums, several in the United States. A number of Ladysmith Black Mambazo’s albums have won Grammy Awards in the categories best traditional folk recording or best traditional world music album (see Rock music (World music) . Liph’ Iqiniso (1994) celebrates the end of apartheid in South Africa, and includes songs in languages other than isiZulu. Shaka Zulu Revisited (2017), a re-recording of the group’s 1987 album Shaka Zulu, honors Shabalala, who retired from touring in 2014.
Ladysmith Black Mambazo have made recordings with internationally known singers, including Dolly Parton and Stevie Wonder . The group’s album Heavenly (1997) includes collaborations with Parton and versions of songs by Bob Dylan and other songwriters. Ladysmith Black Mambazo’s music was included on the soundtracks of several films, including Coming to America (1988), A Dry White Season (1989), Cry, the Beloved Country (1995), and The Lion King II: Simba’s Pride (1998). The group’s work with the Steppenwolf Theatre Company of Chicago resulted in the musicals The Song of Jacob Zulu (1992) and Lindiwe (2019).
Ladysmith Black Mambazo became particularly important to Nelson Mandela , the first black president of South Africa. Mandela described Joseph Shabalala as South Africa’s major cultural ambassador. The group accompanied Mandela to Norway in 1993 when he received the Nobel Peace Prize and performed at the ceremony. In the late 1990’s, Shabalala created a trust fund for the establishment of the first college for the teaching and preservation of traditional South African music, the Mambazo Academy of South African Music and Culture. Shabalala died on Feb. 11, 2020.
