Miriam Makeba Overview

Miriam Makeba unites blues, gospel, contemporary jazz, and folk with traditional Xhosa songs to make music that can truly be categorized as "World." After gaining international attention in the early 1950s for her performances in the film "Come Back, Africa" and... [more]

Miriam Makeba unites blues, gospel, contemporary jazz, and folk with traditional Xhosa songs to make music that can truly be categorized as "World." After gaining international attention in the early 1950s for her performances in the film "Come Back, Africa" and the jazz opera "King Kong," Makeba was invited by Ethiopian dictator Haile Selassie to sing before the Organization of African Unity. Makeba's music -- joyous, uplifting, and soft-spoken as it is -- has a serious political message. She calls for the celebration of traditional beliefs and customs at the same time as advocating for progress towards individual rights in Africa. Makeba's politics, particularly her outspokenness about the evils of apartheid, caused her to be banished from South Africa (her homeland) for 30 years. In 1968 she married Black Panther activist Stokely Carmichael -- a move which led to the cancellation of her American concerts and contracts. She was effectively exiled again and moved to New Guinea, where she continued her musical career. In 1988 she joined Paul Simon's "Graceland" tour, and in 1990 was finally allowed to return to her homeland. Makeba has also collaborated with Harry Belafonte and trumpeter Hugh Masekela (also her former husband). [show less]