Music in the movement against apartheid
Following the Sharpeville massacre in 1960 and the arrest or exile of a number of leaders, songs became more downbeat, while increasing censorship forced them to use subtle and hidden meanings.
This trend intensified in the 1980s, with racially mixed fusion bands testing the laws of apartheid, before these were dismantled with the release of Nelson Mandela in 1990 and the eventual restoration of majority rule in 1994.
Examples included "Biko" by Peter Gabriel, "Sun City" by Artists United Against Apartheid and a concert in honour of Nelson Mandela's 70th birthday.
[4] The 1923 Natives (Urban Areas) Act forced black South Africans to leave cities unless they were there to work for white people, and excluded them from any role in the government.
[4] Within the country, resistance ranged from loosely organised groups to tightly knit ones, and from non-violent protests to armed opposition from the African National Congress.
The ANC had been founded in 1912, and would begin and end its meetings with its anthem "Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika", an early example of music in the resistance to racial segregation.
[14] As the apartheid government became more entrenched in the 1950s,[15] musicians came to see their music as more political in nature, led partly by a campaign of the African National Congress to increase its support.
A number of musicians, including Makeba, Hugh Masekela, Abdullah Ibrahim, Jonas Gwangwa, Chris McGregor, and Kippie Moeketsie went into exile.
A recording by Masuka referring to the killing of Patrice Lumumba led to a raid on her studio and her being declared a wanted individual, preventing her from living in South Africa for the next 30 years.
[23] The cultural isolation forced by apartheid led to artists within South Africa creating local adaptations of popular genres, including rock music, soul, and jazz.
[24] Mayibuye was established as a growing number of ANC activists argued that cultural events needed to form a part of their work, and could be used to raise awareness of apartheid, gather support, and drive political change.
[28] "Soweto Blues" was one of many melancholic songs composed by Masekela during this period that expressed his support of the anti-apartheid struggle, along with "Been Gone Far Too Long," "Mama," and "The Coal Train.
"[29] Songs written after the Soweto uprising were generally political in nature, but used hidden meaning to avoid suppression, especially as the movement against apartheid gained momentum.
[31] As with Mayibuye, the group tried to use their performances to raise awareness and generate support for the ANC; however, they relied chiefly on new material composed by their own members, such as Jonas Gwangwa.
The music became more radical and more urgent as the protests grew in size and number, now frequently invoking and praising the guerrilla movements that had gained steam after the Soweto uprising.
Several musicians from Europe and North America refused to perform in South Africa during the apartheid regime: these included The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and the Walker Brothers.
In 1968 the United Nations passed a resolution asking members to cut any "cultural, educational, and sporting ties with the racist regime", thereby bringing pressure to bear on musicians and other performers to avoid playing in South Africa.
[21] Dammers utilised the association with the anti-apartheid movement to popularise the song, by putting an image of Mandela on the front of the cover for the album, and placing information about the apartheid regime on the back.
[21] In the late 1980s, Paul Simon caused controversy when he chose to record his album Graceland in South Africa, along with a number of Black African musicians.
[45] As a way out of the fracas, Hugh Masekela, who had known Simon for many years, proposed a joint musical tour, which would include songs from Graceland as well as from black South African artists.
[51][50] The use of music to raise awareness about apartheid paid off: a survey after the concert found that among people aged between 16 and 24, three-fourths knew of Nelson Mandela, and supported his release from prison.
"Thina Sizwe" included references to stolen land, was described as depicting emotional desolation, while "Senzeni Na" (what have we done) achieved the same effect by repeating that phrase a number of times.
[63][62] Radio and television broadcasts were area-specific such that members of different racial groups received different programs, and music was selected keeping the ideology of the government in mind.
[63] For instance, Shifty Records, from the time of its establishment in 1982 until the end of the 1980s, had 25 music albums and seven singles banned by the Directorate of Publications because of political content and a further 16 for other reasons such as blasphemy and obscenity.
[32] Many black musicians faced harassment from the police; Jonas Gwangwa stated that performers were often stopped and required to explain their presence in "white" localities.
[72][21][73] The song "Weeping", performed by the band Bright Blue and written by Dan Heymann, a "reluctant army conscript", used "Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika", an anthem of the ANC that had been banned, as the backdrop for symbolic lyrics about a man living in fear of an oppressive society.
Savuka, a multi-racial band, were often arrested or had their concerts raided for playing their song "Asimbonanga", which was dedicated to Biko, Mandela, and others associated with the anti-apartheid movement.
Major surveillance and threats from police sparked trouble at the beginning of the tour, which created issues over suitable venues, and the musicians were forced to play in abandoned buildings.
[1] After Roger Lucey wrote a song critical of the secret police, he received threatening visits by them late at night, and had tear gas poured into an air-conditioning unit during one of his concerts.
[6] In addition, poetry was traditionally seen by some South Africans as a legitimate means of criticising authority, with poetic licence allowing artists to say things that would otherwise not be acceptable.
