Thee Legacy from KZN gain traction speaking to the soul
Blend of Ladysmith Black Mambazo, The Soil
IT’S about the spirits connecting, a type of music that you have to feel for it to work. It speaks to the soul. This is how founder Jabulani Mthembu of Thee Legacy, a contemporary Isicathamiya a cappella group, describes the way their sound comes together.
“The sound won’t be perfect if we don’t connect with it. That’s how we fell in love with the genre.”
The group won the inaugural The Sing Off SA last year and have been working on their self-titled debut album.
“It was such a brilliant experience. As a group we have been singing since 2009, and when we decided to audition, it was just to see how far we would go. We went there and did our thing and the people really appreciated it,” said Mthembu.
The five-member group’s sound is almost a cross between The Soil and Ladysmith Black Mambazo, where they fuse various urban influences to enhance their distinct a cappella style. The guys come from the INK area of KwaZuluNatal: Inanda, Ntuzuma and KwaMashu.
The name Thee Legacy was chosen by Mthembu to represent their originality.
“We are staying true to who we are and being rooted in our culture, not forgetting where we come from. We are also adding a modern touch so that we can accommodate the younger audience.”
Mthembu said Isicathamiya was usually seen as a genre for the older generation, but with their modern sound, even young people were showing their appreciation.
“All the guys were doing different genres when we came together. Simphiwe Sikhakhane was in gospel, I did a lot of R&B, Khanyisani Mazibuko did Afro-soul, Philani Duma was into kwaito and Emile Ngcobo was big on poetry. We took all of that and our inspiration from Ladysmith Black Mambazo, and said How can we make it sound cool?.”
For the album, the group got a lot of input from music wizards RJ Benjamin and Samkelo Mdolomba.
“We took their pointers and still managed to stick to who we are; they really loved our sound.”
The album was released in October and has received a warm reaction from fans. Mthembu said some of the stand-out tracks for him included Wena Wedwa, S’thandwa Sami and Fonele.
For people who are still not familiar with the group, they can enjoy the sound of their voices when they come to Joburg next week for a promotion they are doing with Simba chips.
“We did a recording with them for their new advert. So we’ll be sharing some of our music along the way,” he said.
The album is in music stores and on music store apps.
@mane_mpi