Kelvin Kachingwe
14 November 2008
opinion
THE night, no doubt, belonged to Miriam Makeba. Her appearance on that stage is what you would call "long-awaited".
This was on New Year's eve in 2004, and the stage was set at the Zambezi Sun Hotel in Livingstone.
Sun International, with its then graceful public relations manager, Fredah Mudenda, had invited the "Empress of African Song" to grace the countdown to the New Year.
Prior to her coming, Sun International had played host to jazz artiste Jonathan Butler, kwaito music group Bongo Maffin and trumpeter Hugh Masekela, Makeba's former husband.
But this one was different. Mama Africa, at the then age of 72, coming to perform in Zambia, could as well be the last time one was to see her live in concert.
Well, for the majority that had paid the K250,000 for a ticket, it was also the first, including this writer, although he benefited from a complimentary ticket and a glass of white wine.
But first, a Zambian band would have to open for her. Uncle Rex and the likes of Ras Willie, Mutamula Mwale and Sebastian Mutale on instruments, and Mampi on vocals, had the rare privilege of doing so.
At that time, Mampi was not that well known and was still trying to find her feet in the music industry.
Mampi actually had no album to her credit and was just in the process of finalising the recording of her debut piece, Maloza.
Still, she rose to the occasion that night, delivering some poignant vocals that earned her a standing ovation from the cosmopolitan audience.
Even at that early stage, it was easy to see where Mampi was heading to in music.
The rest, as they say in the business, is history.
But the history of African music, and indeed the liberation struggle of Africa, cannot be complete without the mention of the name Miriam Makeba.
At 72, her performance at the Zambezi Sun was so awesome that one would have thought they were watching someone, a 30-something-year-old.
She had a much younger eight-piece band, led by her grandson Nelson Lumumba Lee.
The show was supposed to end a few minutes after mid-night but had to be carried on much longer because the audience just got too excited.
The audience kept on shouting for more and more, more particularly when she performed Malaika, a song originally written by Kenyan composer and musician Fadhili Williams.
At the end of the show, Makeba had once again defied the limitations placed on her mobility by osteoarthritis.
"We had to slightly adjust the programme because the audience was so excited. It became difficult for us to close the show," she said in an interview shortly after the show.
That was on a Saturday night, and the following morning, Miriam had the courtesy of having a one-on-one interview with this writer, in which she did admit to feeling a little tired and longing for retirement.
She, however, said she was definitely going to come back to Zambia to finally say her farewell before she could retire from live performances.
"I want to retire this year (2005), my bones are saying 'you are tired', but first I must come to Zambia and say hello and goodbye, then go to Tanzania, Germany, France and Sweden.
After I retire, I will only be performing for special occasions and special money," she said in a mid-morning interview at the Royal Livingstone where she was staying.
She, of course, came back to Zambia mid-this year and performed at Sandy's Creation.
Whether that was the farewell she had talked about, is not certain.
She, however, did admit that since her return from exile, where she spent about three decades, demand for her performances had been soaring, making it difficult for her to retire.
For instance, she made reference to the year 1998, when she spent the whole year touring Africa, USA and Europe.
When touring the Scandinavia, Mama Africa said she sold out the longest tour ever made there.
Indeed, Makeba had reached a level of statesmanship around the around.
She was normally the first performer at festivals, despite officially announcing her retirement in 1995.
Although many young South Africans had no idea of who Makeba was or what she had struggled for on their behalf, she still remained very popular abroad.
"Everyone keeps calling me and saying 'you have not come to say goodbye to us', so I keep on touring to satisfy them. But this year (2005), I'll finally retire and only appear on special occasions," she said.
So, it happened that she appeared at one more farewell concert in Naples, Italy, in memory of six immigrants from Ghana shot dead last September and in support of Roberto Saviano, an Italian journalist threatened with death by the Naples Mafia, because of his exposure of the mob in his bestselling book.
Reports in the international media say her final concert went ahead despite an alleged threat posed by the Mafia to the security of those performing and attending.
An Italian newspaper, La Repubblica, said "not even the arrogance of the Camorra" had stopped the performance, with reports suggesting that threats had been issued to those constructing the stage.
The concert had been staged on a square where, last May, Domenico Noviello, a local anti Mafia businessman, had been gunned down. Castelvolturno, a grim and rundown seaside resort, was also the scene of a Camorra massacre in September, when six immigrants of African origin were shot dead in a turf war over drugs.
But that was Makeba, the activist and musician.
When this writer asked her what were the most memorable moments in her 50-plus years music career, the songstress recalled her presence at the summit of African leaders in May 1963 that would lead to the establishment of the Organisation of African Unity.
"I was the only artiste from an African country that witnessed the birth of the organisation.
"The other memorable occasion for me is recently when leaders of African countries gathered in Sudan, and waited in line to shake hands with me," she said.
However, this is not to say that she belittles her artistic achievements.
In any case, she has about 30 albums recorded by upward of 20 record labels, duets with some top-notch musicians that include Paul Simon and Harry Belafonte, as well as the first African singer to score a top-10 US pop chart and win a Grammy.
It is just that her political struggles had become an integral part of her aesthetic, serving to lend more weight to her music.
One reason why she was eager to come back to Zambia and Tanzania to say her farewell is the role the two countries played in the liberation of the southern African region.
She said as South Africans, they would never forget the sacrifices that Zambia and Tanzania gave to the liberation struggle in southern Africa.
"It would be ungrateful for us to forget the sacrifices that you (Zambians) made, it would have been easy for you to tell our freedom fighters to go back home because you were being bombed, but you didn't," she said.
In her final reflection, Makeba said she managed to reach were she had because of dedication and love for the music industry.
She said the music industry had the potential to create jobs for the country if right policies and investments were in place.
"When I was talking to the young musicians at State House (she had earlier paid a courtesy call on then first lady Maureen Mwanawasa accompanied by local female musicians), I heard others saying they have done some recordings but are looking for distribution deals.
"When I asked them whether Lusaka has a recording studio, they said 'yes but no a record company'".
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