With songs that tell the story of a man’s life, his woes, his dreams, maskanda (or maskandi) music has not surprisingly been dubbed the ‘Zulu Blues’. Distinguished by its picked guitar style and rapidly spoken Zulu praise poetry, maskanda music is peculiar to South Africa. But that doesn’t mean that it’s not appreciated world-wide – Zibokwakhe ‘Phuzekhemisi’ Mnyandu, the recipient of a 2014 Living Legends Award for Music and Entertainment, has played to audiences as far afield as Denmark and Japan!
Despite this international success, Phuzekhemisi chooses to stay close to home in Mkhomazi, and is very much in touch with his roots. Outspoken on all issues, his stage name translates as ‘drink the medicine’, a reference to the sometimes unpleasant truths contained in his work.
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