The South African liberation struggle was carried along by songs that served as a vehicle for the message and also mobilizing for action. Steve Biko aptly captured this importance of songs in this way:
“Any suffering we experienced was made more real by song and rhythm which lead to a culture of defiance, self- assertion and group pride and solid...arity. This is a culture that emanates from a situation of a common experience’
These songs were for also communicating and bringing political awareness to those that could hear. This was the case in my own personal experience as I got to know of many liberation struggles leaders and martyrs through song as the media was not supposed to write about them. I remember asking my grandmother who (Oliver) Tambo was after listening to the song ‘Phesheya kwemifula sobabamba nezingane zabo, ilitye lika Tambo linkqonkqoziwe lovulwa ngubani”. The song was about heeding the call of Oliver Tambo to fight back and I can remember Mthunzi Frans leading it. My one week detention as a twelve year old it was preceded by innocent singing of “freedom songs” in front of a security police mini-bus with tinted windows. I suspect that they recorded our performance and that’s why they could wake us up around three in the morning. They saw in us a source of information but we were just children that were enjoying the songs’ rhythm in the songs and could tell them nothing about township guns an people who burnt houses even when they beat us. I still enjoy freedom songs but with more understanding and analysis of the songs.
The election campaigns of different political parties used the songs a lot. Some altered the old songs and others were completely new for me. COPE and the ANC sometimes sang the same songs to praise their leaders. An example is a song that I sung in church asking Jesus to hold my hand so that I do not burn in fire like those in Sodom and Gomorrah.
COPE sang that Terror (Lekota) must hold them by their hands so that they do not fall amongst these beasts (read ANC). The ANC asked Jacob Zuma to hold their hands so that they do not fall like those who’ve left the organization (read COPE members). The second part of this song is about how Jesus has a good heart that shelters his children. The COPE members were sheltered by Terror and the ANC by Zuma. This is one song that I do not sing in political rallies because it conflicts with my faith. In one funeral an acquaintance, who goes to the same church with me, saw it as strange that I argue that I will never seek for shelter in man’s (or woman) heart.
Old election songs were resuscitated. There was that favourite “thina sonke kulendawo sovotel’I ANC” (We will all vote for the ANC). This and other old songs were also sung by COPE in slightly altered versions as these were composed when many COPE members were still in the ANC. I sang my heart out in a funeral when someone led the Song “Jacob Zuma, my president”. This is a song that I viewed as ill-discipline on the march to the Polokoane conference as Thabo was the president of the ANC. My understanding is that Party discipline dictates that a legitimately elected president, no matter how unpopular he/she is, gets accorded the status until they gets voted out. People who are “drunk” with power or “thirty for blood” tend to want to force all of us to disregard organizational discipline. After the Polokoane conference I respected the majority decision and in not even one instance did I act in a way that questioned the legitimacy of Jacob Zuma’s presidency. I was of course labeled by some imbeciles who viewed debate as a sign of disloyalty.
A new song was the one that reflected the passion for Zuma’s presidency amongst ANC members and followers, “ndifung’ isibhozo uZum’uzophatha” ( I vow that Zuma will be this country’s President) The ANC also had a song that insulted Terror Lekota whilst COPE had one that embraced him as “Terror wethu” (Our Terror Lekota). It’s good that we reflect on music and not on the number of deaths that were due to election campaigns. The South African liberation struggle was carried along by songs that served as a vehicle for the message and also mobilizing for action. Steve Biko aptly captured this importance of songs in this way: “Any suffering we experienced was made more real by song and rhythm which lead to a culture of defiance, self- assertion and group pride and solid...arity. This is a culture that emanates from a situation of a common experience’ These songs were for also communicating and bringing political awareness to those that could hear. This was the case in my own personal experience as I got to know of many liberation struggles leaders and martyrs through song as the media was not supposed to write about them. I remember asking my grandmother who (Oliver) Tambo was after listening to the song ‘Phesheya kwemifula sobabamba nezingane zabo, ilitye lika Tambo linkqonkqoziwe lovulwa ngubani”. The song was about heeding the call of Oliver Tambo to fight back and I can remember Mthunzi Frans leading it. My one week detention as a twelve year old it was preceded by innocent singing of “freedom songs” in front of a security police mini-bus with tinted windows. I suspect that they recorded our performance and that’s why they could wake us up around three in the morning. They saw in us a source of information but we were just children that were enjoying the songs’ rhythm in the songs and could tell them nothing about township guns an people who burnt houses even when they beat us. I still enjoy freedom songs but with more understanding and analysis of the songs. The election campaigns of different political parties used the songs a lot. Some altered the old songs and others were completely new for me. COPE and the ANC sometimes sang the same songs to praise their leaders. An example is a song that I sung in church asking Jesus to hold my hand so that I do not burn in fire like those in Sodom and Gomorrah. COPE sang that Terror (Lekota) must hold them by their hands so that they do not fall amongst these beasts (read ANC). The ANC asked Jacob Zuma to hold their hands so that they do not fall like those who’ve left the organization (read COPE members). The second part of this song is about how Jesus has a good heart that shelters his children. The COPE members were sheltered by Terror and the ANC by Zuma. This is one song that I do not sing in political rallies because it conflicts with my faith. In one funeral an acquaintance, who goes to the same church with me, saw it as strange that I argue that I will never seek for shelter in man’s (or woman) heart. Old election songs were resuscitated. There was that favourite “thina sonke kulendawo sovotel’I ANC” (We will all vote for the ANC). This and other old songs were also sung by COPE in slightly altered versions as these were composed when many COPE members were still in the ANC. I sang my heart out in a funeral when someone led the Song “Jacob Zuma, my president”. This is a song that I viewed as ill-discipline on the march to the Polokoane conference as Thabo was the president of the ANC. My understanding is that Party discipline dictates that a legitimately elected president, no matter how unpopular he/she is, gets accorded the status until they gets voted out. People who are “drunk” with power or “thirty for blood” tend to want to force all of us to disregard organizational discipline. After the Polokoane conference I respected the majority decision and in not even one instance did I act in a way that questioned the legitimacy of Jacob Zuma’s presidency. I was of course labeled by some imbeciles who viewed debate as a sign of disloyalty. A new song was the one that reflected the passion for Zuma’s presidency amongst ANC members and followers, “ndifung’ isibhozo uZum’uzophatha” ( I vow that Zuma will be this country’s President) The ANC also had a song that insulted Terror Lekota whilst COPE had one that embraced him as “Terror wethu” (Our Terror Lekota). It’s good that we reflect on music and not on the number of deaths that were due to election campaigns.
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