Difference between revisions of "Soweto Blues (1977)"

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== Key Lyrics ==
 
== Key Lyrics ==
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''The children got a letter from the master''
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''It said: no more Xhosa, Sotho, no more Zulu''
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''Refusing to comply they sent an answer''
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''That's when the policemen came to the rescue''
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''Children were flying bullets dying''
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''The mothers screaming and crying''
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''The fathers were working in the cities''
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''The evening news brought out all the publicity''
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''Benikuphi ma madoda (where were the men)''
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''Abantwana beshaywa (when the children were throwing stones)''
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''Ngezimbokodo Mabedubula abantwana (when the children were being shot)''
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''Benikhupi na (where were you?)''
  
 
== Background ==
 
== Background ==

Revision as of 03:58, 22 January 2021

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Soweto Blues is a protest song written by Hugh Masekela and performed by Miriam Makeba.[1] The song is about the Soweto uprising that occurred in 1976, following the decision by the apartheid government of South Africa to make Afrikaans a medium of instruction at school. The uprising was forcefully put down by the police, leading to the death of between 176 and 700 people. The song was released in 1977 as part of Masekela's album You Told Your Mama Not to Worry.[2] The song became a staple at Makeba's live concerts, and is considered a notable example of music in the movement against apartheid.[3]

Key Lyrics

The children got a letter from the master

It said: no more Xhosa, Sotho, no more Zulu

Refusing to comply they sent an answer

That's when the policemen came to the rescue

Children were flying bullets dying

The mothers screaming and crying

The fathers were working in the cities

The evening news brought out all the publicity


Benikuphi ma madoda (where were the men)

Abantwana beshaywa (when the children were throwing stones)

Ngezimbokodo Mabedubula abantwana (when the children were being shot)

Benikhupi na (where were you?)

Background

Performances

References

  1. https://books.google.com/books?id=nzsJUVS4ODIC&pg=PA112. George Plasketes. 2009. Ashgate Publishing Ltd. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
  2. https://www.discogs.com/Masekela-You-Told-Your-Mama-Not-To-Worry/release/1674365. Discogs. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
  3. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/miriam-makeba-singer-banned-from-her-native-south-africa-for-fighting-apartheid-1009604.html. Jon Lusk. 11 November 2008. The Independent. Retrieved January 22, 2021.