Miriam Makeba, Mama Afrika, Dies at 76 After ConcertMiriam Makeba, Mama Afrika, Dies at 76 After Concert
By Nicky Smith
Nov. 10 (Bloomberg) -- Miriam Makeba, the South African recording artist known as ``Mama Afrika'' who was exiled from her own country during apartheid, died of a heart attack last night after giving a concert in Italy. She was 76.
The Grammy-winning Makeba ``collapsed as she was leaving the stage,'' South African Minister of Foreign Affairs Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma said in an e-mailed statement today. Makeba, who brought the music of her continent to a global audience in the 1960s, had been performing at the Vastel Volturno in the province of Caserta, 35 kilometers (22 miles) northwest of the city of Naples.
``One of the greatest songstresses of our time, Miriam Makeba, has ceased to sing,'' Dlamini Zuma said. ``South Africa's goodwill ambassador died performing what she did best -- an ability to communicate a positive message through the art of singing.''
Makeba, born on March 4, 1932, has been credited with making South African folk music familiar to a global audience. In 1962, she sang at John F. Kennedy's birthday party at Madison Square Garden. Her best known songs were the Click Song, ``Qongoqothwane'' in her native language of isiXhosa, which she described as a ``Xhosa wedding song,'' and ``Pata Pata,'' which means Touch Touch. The latter was a hit in the U.S. in 1967, according to Web site emusic.com.
``The sudden passing of our beloved Miriam has saddened us and our nation,'' South African Former President Nelson Mandela said in an e-mailed statement today.
Sacrifice in Exile
``Despite her tremendous sacrifice and the pain she felt to leave behind her beloved family and her country when she went into exile, she continued to make us proud as she used her worldwide fame to focus attention on the abomination of apartheid,'' he said.
``Her haunting melodies gave voice to the pain of exile,'' Mandela said. ``At the same time, her music inspired a powerful sense of hope in all of us. She was South Africa's first lady of song.''
Makeba, known as Mama Afrika, lived in exile for more than thirty years after her passport was revoked when she tried to return to South Africa in 1960 to attend her mother's funeral after touring. She was outspoken in her criticism of apartheid during her exile.
She won a Grammy in 1966 for a folk-music album she recorded with Harry Belafonte. Her marriage to Stokely Carmichael, a Trinidadian black power activist, stirred controversy. She and Carmichael moved to Guinea. Makeba later represented the country at the United Nations.
Roberto Saviano
Makeba had been performing at a concert for Roberto Saviano, an Italian journalist who wrote the book ``Gomorrah'' exposing the workings of the Neapolitan mafia known as Camorra. Saviano has had his life threatened and has been granted an armed bodyguard by the district in Naples where he lives.
``It was fitting that her last moments were spent on a stage, enriching the hearts and lives of others - and again in support of a good cause,'' Mandela said.
In an interview with the U.K.'s Guardian in May, Makeba told the newspaper of her struggle to perform in Italy the month before. ``I couldn't breathe, and I was struggling. But I'd rather cancel a show than go on stage and sit in a chair, or walk on with a stick.''
To contact the reporter on this story: Nicky Smith in Johannesburg nsmith38@bloomberg.net.
Source: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601116&sid=aRZDFY8T6ikk&refer=africa Back | Print version | SEND ARTICLE VIA E-MAIL | 
