Makeba, Miriam

The early years

Born in Johannesburg on March 4, 1932 . Her parents belonged to the Bantu peoples group . The mother was from the Swazi people, who gave the name Swaziland . The father, who died when Miriam was 6 years old, belonged to the people of the scythe . As a child, Miriam Makeba studied singing at the Kilmerton Preparatory Institute in Pretoria , which she attended for 8 years.

Miriam Makeba originally toured with an amateur group. Her professional career began in the 50s of the 20th century in the South African group Manhattan Brothers . She then formed her own band, The Skylarks, performing a mixture of jazz and traditional South African tunes.

In 1959, together with her future husband, Hugh Masekela participated in the musical "King Kong". Although Miriam Makeba was already a successful performer, she received little money for each record, without receiving any royalties. Therefore, to continue her career, she sought to leave for the United States . The turning point occurred after filming in the 1959 documentary "Come Back, Africa" ​​by independent author Lionel Rogozin . Miriam Makeba attended the Venice Film Festival , where the film premiered.

Exile

After leaving South Africa, Miriam Makeba moved to London, where she met Harry Belafonte , who helped her gain fame and become famous in America. There she recorded many of her famous hits, including Pata Pata, The Click Song ( Qongqotwane , Qongqothwane in the braid language), and Malayka. In 1966, together with Harry Belafonte received the Grammy Award for the best album in ethnic (folk) style. The award-winning album An Evening With Belafonte / Makeba ( Evening with Belafonte and Makeba ) was dedicated to the deplorable situation of the black population of South Africa.

When in 1960, in connection with the death of her mother, Miriam Makeba tried to return to South Africa, she discovered that her passport was canceled. In 1963, after speaking out against apartheid at the UN , she was stripped of South African citizenship and the right to return to the country. In this regard, she was granted the honorary citizenship of ten countries, she had nine passports.

In 1968, she married an African-American activist of Trinidad descent, a civil rights activist, Stockley Carmichael . This marriage caused criticism in the United States, which resulted in the cancellation of already scheduled recordings and concerts of the singer. In this regard, the couple moved to Guinea , where they became close friends of the family of President Ahmed Sekou Toure . After a divorce from her husband in 1973, Miriam Makeba continued to perform mainly in Africa, South America and Europe. She performed during the famous meeting of Mohammed Ali and George Foreman in Zaire in 1974. She was also a representative of Guinea at the UN, for which she received the Dag Hammarskjöld Prize in 1986.

Return to South Africa

In 1990, Nelson Mandela convinced Miriam Makeb to return to his homeland. In November 1991, she participated as a guest guest on the Bill Cosby Show , starring in the episode "Olivia Comes Out of Imprisonment." In 1992, she starred in one of the main roles in the film Sarafina! about the youth unrest of 1976 in South Africa. She also took part in the 2002 documentary “Amandla !: A Revolution in Four-Part Harmony”, where, along with other participants, she recalled the days of apartheid.

In January 2000, her album Homeland , released in South Africa, was nominated for a Grammy in the Best Foreign Album category. In 2001 she was awarded the Otto Gahn Peace Medal for “outstanding achievements in the field of the struggle for peace and mutual understanding between peoples”. In 2002, she shared the Polar Music Prize with Russian citizen Sofia Gubaidulina . In 2004, she was elected 38th on the list of one hundred prominent South Africans. In 2005, she began a farewell world tour with concerts in all countries, which she visited during the years of her creative career. According to some reports, in the last years of her life she suffered from arthritis.

Death

On November 9, 2008, Miriam Makeba felt unwell during the performance of a national concert in her honor, held in Italy , near the city of Caserta . The concert was organized in support of the writer Roberto Saviano in his confrontation with Camorra , a Neapolitan mafia organization. The singer had a heart attack after her performance of the famous hit "Pata Pata" ( Pata Pata ). She was taken to the hospital, but the treatment was unsuccessful, and the next day Miriam Makeba died.

Studio Albums

• Miriam Makeba: 1960 - RCA LSP2267
• The Many Voices Of Miriam Makeba: 1960 - Kapp KL1274
• The World Of Miriam Makeba: 1963 - RCA LSP2750
• Makeba: 1964 - RCA LSP2845
• Makeba Sings: 1965 - RCA LSP3321
• An Evening With Belafonte / Makeba (with Harry Belafonte ): 1965 - RCA LSP3420
• The Magic of Makeba: 1965 - RCA LSP3512
• The Magnificient Miriam Makeba: 1966 - Mercury 134016
• All About Miriam: 1966 - Mercury 134029
• Miriam Makeba In Concert !: 1967 - Reprise RS6253

• Pata Pata: 1967 - Reprise RS6274
• Makeba !: 1968 - Reprise RS6310
• Live in Tokyo: 1968 - Reprise SJET8082
• Keep Me In Mind: 1970 - Reprise RS6381
• A Promise: 1974 - RCA YSPL1-544
• Live In Conakry - Appel A L'Afriqu: 1974 - Sonodisc SLP22
• Miriam Makeba & Bongi: 1975 - Sonodisc SLP48
• Live in Paris: 1977 - CD6508
• Country Girl: 1978 - Sonodisc ESP165518
• Comme Une Symphonie d'Amour: 1979
• Sangoma: 1988 - WB 925673-1
• Welela: 1989 - Gallo CDGSP3084
• Eyes On Tomorrow: 1991 - Gallo CDGSP3086
• Sing Me A Song: 1993 - CDS12702
• Homeland, 2000 - Putumayo PUTU1642
• Live at Berns Salonger, Stockholm, Sweden, 1966: 2003 - Gallo Music GWVCD-49
• Reflecting 2004 - Gallo Music GWVCD-51
• Makeba Forever, 2006, Gallo Music CDGURB-082

Collections

• The Queen Of African Music - 17 Great Songs, 1987 \
• Africa 1960-65 recordings, 1991
• Eyes On Tomorrow, 1991
• The Best Of Miriam Makeba & The Skylarks: 1956-1959 recordings, 1998
• Mama Africa: The Very Best Of Miriam Makeba, 2000
• The Guinea Years, 2001
• The Definitive Collection, 2002
• The Best Of The Early Years, 2003

• Miriam Makeba on the People site
• Miriam Makeba is gone
• South African singer Miriam Makeba dies after her concert in Italy