Wednesday, 14 April 2021
Fezokuhle Mthonti is from Ladysmith in KwaZulu-Natal. She writes about culture for New Frame and is committed to writing from a feminist perspective.
The month of March holds many memories in South Africa, of loss and liberation, from the Sharpeville massacre to the untimely death of Mthokozisi Ntumba during the recent student protests.
Ladysmith is steeped in the bloody history of the South African War, of which there is little account of black lives lost. Yet it is home to the delicate choral sounds of Ladysmith Black Mambazo.
The death of the basketball icon led to an outpouring of love for a man who transcended the sport. But when we mourn him, we must mourn the complete Kobe Bryant, with all his triumphs and flaws.
The founder of the Grammy Award-winning Ladysmith Black Mambazo has died at the age of 78, leaving a continued and rich legacy in isicathamiya choral singing.
By choosing deliberately to take up space, the new Miss Universe has used pageantry’s enormous audience to stage feminist interventions and do the work of politics.
Thandiswa Mazwai channels the process, dynamic and spirit of Hugh Masekela as she and his band effortlessly tie together notes and strands from past and present.
Jahmil XT Qubeka’s Knuckle City mirrors the violence and poverty in the Eastern Cape township of Mdantsane, which has yielded so many champions it is known as the boxing mecca of South Africa.
The National Arts Festival Fringe has always showcased innovative and experimental work, but new artists in particular are struggling to earn or losing money on their productions.
The And Counting exhibition at the Johannesburg Art Gallery considers memory and the challenges of archiving art in Zambia, a country that has no institutional collections.
Through seat-of-her-pants observational comedy, satirist Lesego Tlhabi’s character brings to life the anti-black attitudes that pepper South African politics and popular culture.
The ANC has, again, appointed a minister of the arts with very little interest in the arts.
Born and raised in Africa, Sampa Tembo’s work is helping to bring issues of race to the fore in Australia, where she studied and now lives.
Members of shack dwellers’ movement Abahlali baseMjondolo are using choral hymns to share their daily reality of struggle and indignity with the world.
Art, education and culture collide in ‘Homecoming’, a documentary that is unavoidably rooted in black politics and raises unique questions about South Africa.
With sales of about 5 000 copies and nine print runs, Koleka Putuma’s ‘accessible and compelling’ anthology of poems is bucking the global trend of poetry selling in small numbers.
It was a gathering of maskandi stars and their fan bases and, as promised by King Khuba, it filled the venue in Durban with sound, lights and colour – and a hint of rivalry.
Dismissed Heineken factory worker and theatre-maker Gladys Thaane is using performance as an educational tool to teach and empower workers on and around the factory floor.
The gifted singer-songwriter was already signed to a label as a young teenager. Her legacy includes singing, performing and antagonising the apartheid government.
Samkelo Mdolomba has refined his vocal talent over time, drawing on past life and musical experiences to hone his unique sound.
The singer-songwriter returns to Joburg in spirit for a production of ‘Nina Simone: Four Women’ at the Market Theatre, reworked for South African audiences.
With almost 8 million loyal South African listeners, Ukhozi FM has become a mainstay in most working-class black South African homes, particularly as the New Year draws closer.