Steve Kekana defied the odds
The departed musician envisioned a world beyond his blindness
Influenced and inspired by Lazarus Kgagudi, Tebogo Steve Kekana was one in a million. The late South African artist has been described passionately by those who have had the privilege to rub shoulders with him. Kekana, aged 62 years- old, recently passed away at the Pietersburg Provincial Hospital.
At the time of his passing, he was apparently working on new music, and had plans to record a live DVD of his works.
Kekana, born in Limpopo, is one of the many South African artists who called Botswana their second home.
He is said to have lost his eye sight at the age of 5 years but that did very little to stop him from reaching for the stars. He is also said to have been influenced by the fact that he wanted to make his mentor, Kgagudi very proud, and never dropped the ball. Kekana was also inspired by the likes of Stevie Wonder, a musical genius who has also done extraordinary things as well as Babsy Mlangeni.
He has recorded 44 albums, a feat that shows that he was truly a musician who was passionate about his craft. His genres ranged from Mbaqanga, Soul, Afro pop, and Jazz. His albums include Iphupho ( 2010), Ha kele Je ( 2009), Umenziwa ( 1980), and Siwelele to mention a few. Over the course of his career, he had hits such as ‘ Take your love and keep it’, featuring Nana Coyote, ‘ Masabatha’, ‘ Gloria’, ‘ Abuti Thabiso’ as well as ‘ I love you Afrika’.
In his last appearance in Botswana in 2019, Kekana was part of the Legends Alive tour, a concert that featured old school artists such as Babsy Mlangeni, Kori Moraba, Johnny Mokhali and Socca Moruakgomo as well as the young Amantle Brown.
The concert had the support of the Botswana Association of the Blind and Partially Sighted ( BABPS), with the intent of procuring white canes for the members of the NGO. The donation never took place as Covid- 19 brought a halt to everything. For decades, Kekana was setting trends in music and has worked with some of the top artists, including Ray Phiri and Nana Coyote.
Speaking in an interview with this publication, Shima Monageng explains that Kekana is one of those personalities who will never be forgotten. He says that he was a musician by nature, and that his craft was ordained by God. “He attained a lot and leaves us with 44 albums to his name,” he says.
He explains that he had a lot going on for him, and that even during a period when the odds were stacked against him, he still managed to do the impossible. He enrolled at Universities and achieved his degree within stipulated duration in the early 90’ s, he explains. He also says that he never used his sight challenges to stop him from doing anything. He later went on to attain an LLB, and worked for departments and offices such as the Gauteng Premier, where he worked for a decade.
“All of these are testament about the kind of a person that he was,” he says. He also says that armed with his qualifications, he did not only want to transform lives through his music. He further says that some of his achievements of holding down a formal job saw him recording most of the albums. “He had a full time job but was still very active in music,” says Monageng. He later went on to become a lecturer at UNISA.
Monageng has featured him at Millenium Jazz Restaurant a couple of times. They had a cordial working relationship.
“He truly believed that blindness is a state of mind hence he did the extraordinary,” he says, adding that he believed that he was destined for greatness which is evidenced by all that he went after.
“He was an easy going human being and you could never have a dull moment around him. He was always full of jokes and a smile. He also influenced a lot of people,” shares Monageng.
He also points out that his passing was not only a loss to South Africa but also to Botswana, where he frequented. Often times, when he had clashing bookings in his home country and Botswana, he would opt for a show in Botswana despite the fact that the SA show had better money. “He was one of the artists who called Botswana their second home,” he notes.
He further says that through their interactions, he learnt that he wanted to do the impossible as he wanted to make Kgagudi very proud, and didn’t want to disappoint him. At the time of his passing, he was working on a new type of sound as he wanted to also tap into the younger generation.
According to another promoter, Zenzele Hirschfeld, his passing is a great loss. She says that one thing about Kekana that stands out is the fact that he nurtured a lot of artists. She also highlights that something that set him apart from others in the industry is how he was passionate about his craft. When he was booked for shows, he would come early to Botswana in order to have sufficient time to rehearse.
“The industry has not only lost a legend, but also a great mentor,” she says. She further says that through their interactions, he believed that music must go on with or without him. One of their recent conversation was about the great loss of another legend, Jonas Gwangwa. It was during that conversation that he told her that he did not want to be forgotten.
“He wants to be remembered for his beautiful music,” she says, adding that he was a father to many, and that he was fond of the likes of Punah Gabasiame, whom he attended her wedding and others such as Nnunu.