Zenzile Miriam Makeba was born in Johannesburg on 4 March 1932. Her mother … Read Full Bio ↴Zenzile Miriam Makeba was born in Johannesburg on 4 March 1932. Her mother was a Swazi sangoma (traditional healer-herbalist). Her father, who died when she was six years old, was a Xhosa. When she was eighteen days old, her mother was arrested for selling umqombothi, an African homemade beer brewed from malt and cornmeal. Her mother was sentenced to a six-month prison term, so Miriam spent her first six months of life in jail. As a child, she sang in the choir of the Kilmerton Training Institute in Pretoria, a primary school that she attended for eight years.
In 1950 at the age of eighteen, Makeba gave birth to her only child, Bongi Makeba, whose father was Makeba's first husband James Kubay. Makeba was then diagnosed with breast cancer, and her husband left her shortly afterwards.
Her professional career began in the 1950s when she was featured in the South African jazz group the Manhattan Brothers, and appeared for the first time on a poster. She left the Manhattan Brothers to record with her all-woman group, The Skylarks, singing a blend of jazz and traditional melodies of South Africa. As early as 1956, she released the single "Pata Pata", which was played on all the radio stations and made her known throughout South Africa.
She had a short-lived marriage in 1959 to Sonny Pillay, a South African singer of Indian descent. Her break came in that year when she had a short guest appearance in Come Back, Africa, an anti-apartheid documentary produced and directed by American independent filmmaker Lionel Rogosin. The short cameo made an enormous impression on the viewers and Rogosin managed to organise a visa for her to attend the première of the film at the twenty-fourth Venice Film Festival in Italy, where the film won the prestigious Critics' Award. That year, Makeba sang the lead female role in the Broadway-inspired South African musical King Kong; among those in the cast was musician Hugh Masekela. She made her U.S. debut on 1 November 1959 on The Steve Allen Show.

Makeba then travelled to London where she met Harry Belafonte, who assisted her in gaining entry to the United States and achieving fame there. When she tried to return to South Africa in 1960 for her mother's funeral, she discovered that her South African passport had been cancelled.

Hush
The Skylarks Lyrics

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Soon one morning (Morning)
Death comes a creeping in the room (Well brother)
Soon one morning (Morning)
Death comes a creeping in the room
Soon, soon one morning (Morning)
Death comes a creeping in the room
Crying oh, my Lord
Oh, my Lord what shall I do?

What shall I do?

Well you may call, call on your mother (Mother)
Your mama can't do you no good
(Well you may) call on your mother (Mother)
Your mama can't do you no good
Call, call on your mother (Mother)
Your mama can't do you no good
Crying oh, my Lord
Oh, my Lord what shall I do?
What shall I do?

Well, well, hush (Hush)
Hush (Hush)
Somebody's calling my name
Well brother hush (Mama yo)
Somebody's calling my name
Hush (Hush)
Hush (Hush)
Somebody's calling my name

Crying oh, my Lord
Oh, my Lord what shall I do?

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of The Skylarks' song "Hush" address the subject of death and the fear and confusion it brings. The verse "Soon one morning, Death comes a creeping in the room" suggests the suddenness and unexpectedness of death. The repetition of the verse emphasizes the inevitability of death and the helplessness that we feel in its presence. The line "Crying oh, my Lord, Oh my Lord what shall I do?" highlights the fear and the uncertainty that we experience in the face of death.

The second verse "Well you may call, call on your mother, your mama can't do you no good" stresses the isolation that we feel in the moment of our impending death. Even the people closest to us cannot help us in that moment, and we can only rely on our faith. The chorus "Hush Hush, somebody's calling my name" adds the idea that death is calling us, and we can only surrender to it.

The Skylarks beautifully express the complex emotions surrounding death and the moment when we have to face it. The lyrics of "Hush" suggest that death is not only a physical occurrence but also a spiritual one, and it is only through faith and acceptance that we can find peace.

Line by Line Meaning

Soon one morning
At some point in the near future

Death comes a creeping in the room
The inevitability of death encroaching on the present moment

Well brother
A term of address for a fellow human being

Soon, soon one morning
The inevitability of death is drawing closer

Crying oh, my Lord
Expressing a feeling of helplessness and pleading for divine assistance

Oh, my Lord what shall I do?
A rhetorical question acknowledging the inevitability of the situation

Your mama can't do you no good
The limitations of relying on earthly help in the face of death

Call, call on your mother
An act of desperation in seeking any form of assistance

Hush (Hush)
The need for silence and attentiveness to a greater presence

Somebody's calling my name
A feeling of being called to a higher power or realm of existence

Mama yo
An exclamation of feeling the presence of something beyond human understanding