Hugh Masekela was an old collaborator of Abdullah Ibrahim. He is reported to have been initially inspired in his musical growth by Trevor Huddleston, a British priest working in the South African townships who financed Masekela's first trumpet. Masekela played his way through the vibrant Sophiatown scene with The Jazz Epistles and to Britain with King Kong, to find himself in New York in the early 1960s. He had hits in the United States with the pop jazz tunes "Up, Up and Away" and the number one smash "Grazin' in the Grass".
A renewed interest in his African roots led him to collaborate with West and Central African musicians, and finally to reconnect with South African players when he set up a mobile studio in Botswana, just over the South African border, in the 1980s. Here he re-absorbed and re-used mbaqanga strains, a style he has continued to use since his return to South Africa in the early 1990s.
In the 1980s, he toured with Paul Simon in support of Simon's then controversial, but highly critically acclaimed, album Graceland, which featured other South African artists such as Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Miriam Makeba, Ray Phiri, and other elements of the band Kalahari, which Masekela recorded with in the 1980s. He also collaborated in the musical development for the Broadway play, Sarafina! He previously recorded with the band Kalahari.
In 2003, he was featured in the documentary film Amandla!, about how the music of South Africa aided in the struggle against apartheid. In 2004, he released his autobiography, Grazin' in The Grass: The Musical Journey of Hugh Masekela, which thoughtfully details his struggles against apartheid in his homeland, as well as his personal struggles against alcohol addiction from the late 1970s through to the 1990s, a period when he migrated, in his personal recording career, to mbaqanga, jazz/funk, and the blending of South African sounds to an adult contemporary sound through two albums he recorded with Herb Alpert, and notable solo recordings, Techno-Bush (recorded in his studio in Botswana), Tomorrow (featuring the anthem "Bring Him Back Home"), Uptownship (a lush-sounding ode to American R and B), Beatin' Aroun' de Bush, Sixty, Time, and most recently, "Revival".
Essential recordings include:
* "Bring Him Back Home"
* "Coal Train (Stimela)"
* "Ziph'nkomo"
* "Don't Go Lose It Baby"
* "Ha Le Se Li De Khanna (The Dowry Song)"
* "Bajabule Bonka"
* "Grazing in the Grass"
* "U-Dwi"
* "The Joke of Life"
* "The Boy's Doin' It"
His song, "Soweto Blues", sung by his former wife, Miriam Makeba, mourns the carnage of the Soweto riots in 1976.
Hugh Masekela is the father of Sal Masekela, host of American channel E!'s Daily 10 show, along with Debbie Matenopoulos.
Ibala Lam
Hugh Masekela Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Ibala lami elimnyama ngiyazidla ngalo
Ibala lami elimnyama ngiyaziqenya ngalo
Ibala lami elimnyama ngiyazidla ngalo
This brown colour is a winner
It's my shining amour
This brown colour is a winner
This brown colour is a winner
It's my shining armour
This brown colour is a winner
It's my shining armour
There was a time when I was dispized (It's my shining armour)
Infarct it used to be a crime but now its alright (It's my shining armour)
I say it now when Im in a crowd (It's my shining armour)
And my children they are mighty proud (of their shining armour)
And walk and talk having a bowl (with my shining armour)
You can no longer put me down because I am brown (It's my shining armour)
Ibala lami elimnyama ngiyaziqenya ngalo
Ibala lami elimnyama ngiyazidla ngalo
Ibala lami elimnyama ngiyaziqenya ngalo
Ibala lami elimnyama ngiyazidla ngalo
Ibala lami elimnyama ngiyazidla ngalo
Ibala lami elimnyama ngiyazidla ngalo
The lyrics of Hugh Masekela's song "Ibala Lam" celebrate the beauty and pride in being black. The phrase "Ibala Lam" means "my colour" in Zulu, and in this song, the colour being celebrated is brown or black. The repetition of the lines "This brown colour is a winner / It's my shining amour" emphasizes the singer's pride in their identity and refuses to be ashamed of their skin colour.
Masekela's lyrics also touch on the historical discrimination and oppression faced by black people, with the lines "There was a time when I was despised / In fact, it used to be a crime but now it's alright." This acknowledges the progress that has been made in fighting racism, but also recognizes that there is still a long way to go. The phrase "It's my shining armour" in the chorus also suggests that the singer's identity is a form of protection and strength in the face of this discrimination.
Overall, "Ibala Lam" champions black pride and celebrates the beauty of blackness, while also acknowledging the struggles and discrimination that black people have faced and continue to face today.
Line by Line Meaning
Ibala lami elimnyama ngiyaziqenya ngalo
This brown colour is a winner
Ibala lami elimnyama ngiyazidla ngalo
It's my shining amour
Ibala lami elimnyama ngiyaziqenya ngalo
This brown colour is a winner
Ibala lami elimnyama ngiyazidla ngalo
It's my shining amour
Ibala lami elimnyama ngiyaziqenya ngalo
This brown colour is a winner
Ibala lami elimnyama ngiyazidla ngalo
It's my shining armour
There was a time when I was dispized (It's my shining armour)
I was discriminated against for my brown skin color
Infarct it used to be a crime but now its alright (It's my shining armour)
My skin color was once considered a crime, but now it is accepted and valued
I say it now when Im in a crowd (It's my shining armour)
I am proud to proclaim my brown skin color in front of others
And my children they are mighty proud (of their shining armour)
My children are proud of their heritage and the color of their skin
And walk and talk having a bowl (with my shining armour)
I can confidently stride forward in life with my brown skin as my source of strength and pride
You can no longer put me down because I am brown (It's my shining armour)
My brown skin is no longer a source of shame or discrimination, but an empowering feature of my identity
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind