Five youngsters putting new spin on isicathamiya
TAKE five young men, traditional isicathamiya music, add some contemporary sounds and you get Thee Legacy.
The group are at the forefront of musical change in South Africa, having taken traditional Zulu music and made it attractive to other young South Africans – so much so that they recently received a nomination at the Metro FM Music Awards.
The group is made up of Emille Ngcobo, 27, Simphiwe Sikhakhane, 28, Khanyisani Mazibuko, 26, Jabulani Mthembu, 28, and Philani Duma, 26.
“A nomination at such a huge awards show is amazing. It means people are enjoying our music and that is great because our genre of music is not very popular in contemporary culture. For it to be aired on commercial radio stations is great,” said Mazibuko.
The group met at the Ekhaya Multi Arts Centre in KwaMashu, where their love of performing brought them together.
“We started as a group in 2009 and we were not called Thee Legacy back then. There were about 12 of us when we first started.
“One day in 2015, a member of the group saw an advert about a new talent show, The Sing-Off SA, and we all decided to enter it. But the show had a condition that each group could only have five members,” said Mazibuko.
“So we all agreed that only the best members out of the 12 of us would make up the new group of five. It was hard to do that, but some people wanted to leave and focus on their jobs. That’s when Thee Legacy was born,” said Ngcobo.
“The Sing-Off SA was amazing. It was difficult, especially during the elimination rounds, but we enjoyed the journey very much. And it was after winning the show that life really changed for us.
“People started seeing us in a very different light and I think they warmed up to a young group like us singing isicathamiya with a contemporary mix,” said Ngcobo.
The group said they would never forget the first time they heard their single, Sthandwa Sami, on the radio. “We were screaming with excitement, it was a very surreal moment for us,” recalled Mazibuko.
Although the group members all come from different music genres like gospel, kwaito, R&B and Afro Pop, they said they all love isicathamiya.
“It’s something we all grew up listening to, it defines us as Africans. Our grandparents and parents listened to it and we have a genuine love for it. It was very easy for us to decide to sing this type of music. We decided to make it our foundation, something we could add modern spins to,” said Mazibuko.
“We really want to change the stereotype that isicathamiya is for old people and I think so far we are doing that, because we have young people telling us that they love isicathamiya because of us,” said Sikhakhane.
The group consider themselves lucky to have had the opportunity to see Ladysmith Black Mambazo, their role models, perform.
“Our reception has been great, but a highlight for us was having Ladysmith Black Mambazo invite us to see them perform and watch them rehearse. We have also shared a stage with them,” said Mazibuko.
The group recently released their self-titled debut album, but say they are already working on new material.
“Putting our debut album together was a walk in the park because we’d been writing our songs for a while, so it was just a matter of getting into the studio. We loved that experience and we’re ready for the next one,” said Ngcobo.