African group shares native musical heritage

Grammy Award-winning Ladysmith Black Mambazo performed for its third time in Bloomington on Monday at the IU Auditorium to cap off Black History Month.

“They’re world-renowned, and I haven’t been to see them yet,” said Atieno Adala, managing editor of Africa Today, a popular African news magazine. “I decided I had to come and watch them this time.”

The a cappella group, which had eight members during Monday’s performance, originated in South Africa. Ladysmith performed a set of songs that mixed its traditional African sounds with Christian gospel music.

Although some of the songs are laced with English, the majority of the group’s material is in Zulu. It is crucial to the group that they connect with every kind of person who listens to them, said group leader Joseph Shabalala, during the concert.

“I don’t understand the language, but it doesn’t matter,” Adala said. “I still just really enjoy the music.”

Ladysmith reached international acclaim when it collaborated with Paul Simon on his 1986 album “Graceland.” Since then, the group has performed all around the United States and plans to perform on its current tour in New Zealand, Australia and the UK.

Ladysmith’s man-made, percussive sounds and rhythmic, synchronized dance moves accompanied the harmonic vocals for which it is known. The group created a relaxed atmosphere for the audience by joking with both the crowd and each other during performances.

“It’s sheer pleasure. They’re really having a good time up there,” Jennie Schurman, an audience member, said. “If you grew up with Paul Simon, you pretty much know who these guys are.”

Sophomore Austin Gibson said he went to the performance to try something new.

“One of my professors recommended this concert to me, and I researched it a bit,”
Gibson said. “I didn’t know what to expect, but I really just wanted to branch out into some new music.”

Shabalala playfully scolded the other singers for their improvised antics, such as trying to pull each other’s pants down in the middle of a song. He also conversed with the audience between songs, telling them of Ladysmith’s successes and its future.

“Ladysmith Black Mambazo is a family,” Shabalala said. “In my group, I have four sons. They are the next generation. They are the future.”

The songs touched on numerous themes, including equality, the struggles of Africa and even romance. Shabalala acknowledged Africa and the world’s history of discrimination.

“Indigenous music is like a mirror,” Shabalala said. “It tells us who we are.”