Tributes pour in for Ladysmith Black Mambazo stalwart Albert Mazibuko

By Lebone Rodah Mosima 

South African leaders and the music industry on Monday and Tuesday continued to pay tribute to Albert Mazibuko, the long-time Ladysmith Black Mambazo member, after the 77-year-old died on Sunday.

Mazibuko, who joined the internationally acclaimed isicathamiya group in 1969, spent more than five decades with Ladysmith Black Mambazo and helped shape the sound that carried the ensemble to audiences across the world.

ALSO READ: WATCH: TMPD Chief Commissioner Yolanda Faro speaks on implicated officers, truck hijackings and others

Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture Gayton McKenzie said Mazibuko’s death was a loss not only to the country’s music industry, but to the nation as a whole.

“Albert Mazibuko was more than a performer; he was the custodian of a uniquely South African sound that travelled across the world and united people through music. Through Ladysmith Black Mambazo, he helped carry the story, resilience and soul