Nkalakatha: One of the songs that united South Africans

If there is one thing I can recall from my childhood days, it would be when one song came out of those big Hi-Fi speakers, people started to move. That song was: Nkalakatha. One of the greatest songs that have united countless groups of people from all backrounds over South Africa. It was one of the early 2000’s songs that one could hear on the T.V, Radio and specially at the braai’s.

The man behind one of South Africa’s most notable songs was Mduduzi Thembinkosi Edmund Tshabalala, also known by his stage name: Mandoza. He was a South African singer-songwriter and kwaito recording artist.

He was known for his contributions to the kwaito genre and his numerous hit singles, including “Nkalakatha”, “Uzoyithola Kanjani, Tornado”, “Sgelekeqe”, “Ngalabesi”, “Godoba”, “Tsotsi Yase Zola” and “Indoda”, which topped the charts in South Africa and all over the African continent. His second album Nkalakatha, released in 2000, became the biggest selling album of his career, selling 350,000 units.

Mandoza was born on 17 January 1978 in Zola, a township in Soweto, where he lived with his mother, his grandparents and two sisters. He never knew his father, his mother claiming that he was murdered the same year Mandoza was born. In 1994 , at the age of 16, he was charged with stealing a car and received a one-and-a-half-year sentence, which he served in Diepkloof Prison.

When he was released from prison, Mandoza formed the group “Chiskop” along with three childhood friends, S’bu, Siphiwe aka General and Sizwe. His talents were discovered by Arthur Mafokate, also known as the King of Kwaito. Mandoza was first played on air by DJ Sipho Mbatha, known as Sgqemeza, of Durban Youth Radio and then of Ukhozi FM.

Mandoza aimed to deliver messages of inspiration to the kwaito music scene. He used his music as a way to encourage young South Africans to achieve their goals. His song “Uzoyithola Kanjani” means: “how are you going to get it, if you don’t get up and go for it.” He credited much of his success to his mentor, Glenn Morris, who helped him during his drug addled early years.

In 2000, he then released his second album Nkalakatha, produced by Gabi Le Roux, to widespread acclaim, selling 350 000 copies which won multi-platinum status. The title track became a crossover hit and reached the top of the charts on both traditionally black and white radio stations.

Mandoza sang in several of South Africa’s many languages, including English, Afrikaans, Zulu, and Xhosa, giving him wide appeal with South African listeners. Mandoza’s music tried to “put a more constructive message into kwaito. Originally, Mandoza did not like the kwaito style, because of its lack of a message and tendency to focus on dancing and pleasure rather than on the plethora of social problems that exist in South Africa

Mandoza passed away on 18 September 2016. According to his family, he was being treated for pharyngeal cancer prior to his death and had lost his eyesight. Mandoza waited in vain for at least three hours for an ambulance at his home, as a last resort his manager used a private vehicle to transport Mandoza to hospital but he died in the car just before arriving at the Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital.