Hugh Ramapolo Masekela (4 April 1939 – 23 January 2018) was a South African trumpeter,

flugelhorn The flugelhorn (), also spelled fluegelhorn, flugel horn, or flügelhorn, is a brass instrument that resembles the trumpet and cornet but has a wider, more conical bore. Like trumpets and cornets, most flugelhorns are pitched in B, though some ...

ist,

cornet The cornet (, ) is a brass instrument similar to the trumpet but distinguished from it by its conical bore, more compact shape, and mellower tone quality. The most common cornet is a transposing instrument in B, though there is also a sopr ...

ist, singer and composer who was described as "the father of South African jazz". Masekela was known for his jazz compositions and for writing well-known

anti-apartheid songs The apartheid regime in South Africa began in 1948 and lasted until 1994. It involved a system of institutionalized racial segregation and white supremacy, and placed all political power in the hands of a White South African, white minority. ...

such as "

Soweto Blues "Soweto Blues" is a protest song written by Hugh Masekela and performed by Miriam Makeba. The song is about the Soweto uprising that occurred in 1976, following the decision by the apartheid government of South Africa to make Afrikaans a medium ...

" and " Bring Him Back Home". He also had a number-one US pop hit in 1968 with his version of "

Grazing in the Grass "Grazing in the Grass" is an instrumental composed by Philemon Hou and first recorded by the South African trumpeter Hugh Masekela. Released in the United States as a single in 1968, it followed United States trumpeter Herb Alpert's vocal perform ...

Early life

Hugh Ramapolo Masekela was born in the township of

KwaGuqa KwaGuqa is a township west of the industrial town of eMalahleni in the South African province of Mpumalanga Mpumalanga () is a province of South Africa. The name means "East", or literally "The Place Where the Sun Rises" in the Swazi, Xhos ...

Witbank Witbank (), officially Emalahleni, is a city situated on the Highveld of Mpumalanga, South Africa, within the Emalahleni Local Municipality. The name Witbank is Afrikaans for "white ridge", and is named after a white sandstone outcrop where wa ...

(now called Emalahleni), South Africa, to Thomas Selena Masekela, who was a health inspector and sculptor and his wife, Pauline Bowers Masekela, a social worker. His younger sister

Barbara Masekela Barbara Mosima Joyce Masekela (born 18 July 1941) is a South African poet, educator, and activist who has held positions of arts leadership within the African National Congress (ANC). Early life and education Barbara Masekela was born on 18 J ...

is a poet, educator and

ANC The African National Congress (ANC) is a social-democratic political party in South Africa. A liberation movement known for its opposition to apartheid, it has governed the country since 1994, when the first post-apartheid election install ...

activist. As a child, he began singing and playing piano and was largely raised by his grandmother, who ran an illegal bar for miners. At the age of 14, after seeing the 1950 film '' Young Man with a Horn'' (in which Kirk Douglas plays a character modelled on American jazz cornetist Bix Beiderbecke), Masekela took up playing the trumpet. His first trumpet was bought for him from a local music store by Archbishop

Trevor Huddleston Ernest Urban Trevor Huddleston (15 June 191320 April 1998) was an English Anglican bishop. He was the Bishop of Stepney in London before becoming the second Archbishop of the Church of the Province of the Indian Ocean. He was best known for ...

, the anti-apartheid chaplain at St. Peter's Secondary School now known as

St. Martin's School (Rosettenville) St Martin's School is an Anglican private co-educational school in Rosettenville, Johannesburg, South Africa. History St. Martin’s School traces its origins back to the foundation of St. Agnes School for the training of domestic helpers in 19 ...

. Huddleston asked the leader of the then

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...

"Native" Municipal Brass Band, Uncle Sauda, to teach Masekela the rudiments of trumpet playing. Masekela quickly mastered the instrument. Soon, some of his schoolmates also became interested in playing instruments, leading to the formation of the Huddleston Jazz Band, South Africa's first youth orchestra. When

Louis Armstrong Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed "Satchmo", "Satch", and "Pops", was an American trumpeter and vocalist. He was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades and several era ...

heard of this band from his friend Huddleston he sent one of his own trumpets as a gift for Hugh. By 1956, after leading other ensembles, Masekela joined Alfred Herbert's African Jazz Revue. From 1954, Masekela played music that closely reflected his life experience. The agony, conflict, and exploitation faced by South Africa during the 1950s and 1960s inspired and influenced him to make music and also spread political change. He was an artist who in his music vividly portrayed the struggles and sorrows, as well as the joys and passions of his country. His music protested about

apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

, government; the hardships individuals were living. Masekela reached a large population that also felt oppressed due to the country's situation. Following a

Manhattan Brothers The Manhattan Brothers was a popular South African singing group in the 1940s and 1950s, during the Apartheid era. Their sound drew on American ragtime, jive, swing, doo-wop, and several other jazz strains, as well as African choral and Zulu harmoni ...

tour of

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

in 1958, Masekela wound up in the orchestra of the musical ''

King Kong King Kong is a fictional giant monster resembling a gorilla, who has appeared in various media since 1933. He has been dubbed The Eighth Wonder of the World, a phrase commonly used within the franchise. His first appearance was in the novelizat ...

'', written by

Todd Matshikiza Todd Tozama Matshikiza (1921–1968) was a South African jazz pianist, composer and journalist. Overview Matshikiza came from a musical family. He graduated from St Peter's College in Rosettenville, Johannesburg, and went on to obtain a d ...

. ''King Kong'' was South Africa's first blockbuster theatrical success, touring the country for a sold-out year with

Miriam Makeba Zenzile Miriam Makeba (4 March 1932 – 9 November 2008), nicknamed Mama Africa, was a South African singer, songwriter, actress, and civil rights activist. Associated with musical genres including Afropop, jazz, and world music, she w ...

and the Manhattan Brothers' Nathan Mdledle in the lead. The musical later went to London's West End for two years.

Career

At the end of 1959,

Dollar Brand Abdullah Ibrahim (born Adolph Johannes Brand on 9 October 1934 and formerly known as Dollar Brand) is a South African pianist and composer. His music reflects many of the musical influences of his childhood in the multicultural port areas of Cap ...

(later known as

Abdullah Ibrahim Abdullah Ibrahim (born Adolph Johannes Brand on 9 October 1934 and formerly known as Dollar Brand) is a South African pianist and composer. His music reflects many of the musical influences of his childhood in the multicultural port areas of Cap ...

Kippie Moeketsi Jeremiah "Kippie" Morolong Moeketsi (27 July 1925 – 27 April 1983) was a South African jazz musician, notable as an alto saxophonist. He is sometimes referred to as "the father of South African jazz" and as "South Africa's Charlie Parker".Jürge ...

, Makhaya Ntshoko,

Jonas Gwangwa Jonas Mosa Gwangwa (19 October 1937 – 23 January 2021) was a South African jazz musician, songwriter and producer. He was an important figure in South African jazz for over 40 years. Career Gwangwa was born in Orlando East, Soweto. He firs ...

, Johnny Gertze and Hugh formed the Jazz Epistles, the first African jazz group to record an LP. They performed to record-breaking audiences in

and

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

through late 1959 to early 1960. Following the 21 March 1960

Sharpeville massacre The Sharpeville massacre occurred on 21 March 1960 at the police station in the township of Sharpeville in the then Transvaal Province of the then Union of South Africa (today part of Gauteng). After demonstrating against pass laws, a crowd o ...

—where 69 protestors were shot dead in

Sharpeville Sharpeville (also spelled Sharpville) is a township situated between two large industrial cities, Vanderbijlpark and Vereeniging, in southern Gauteng, South Africa. Sharpeville is one of the oldest of six townships in the Vaal Triangle. It was na ...

, and the South African government banned gatherings of ten or more people—and the increased brutality of the Apartheid state, Masekela left the country. He was helped by

and international friends such as

Yehudi Menuhin Yehudi or Jehudi (Hebrew: יהודי, endonym for Jew) is a common Hebrew name: * Yehudi Menuhin (1916–1999), violinist and conductor ** Yehudi Menuhin School, a music school in Surrey, England ** Who's Yehoodi?, a catchphrase referring to the v ...

and

John Dankworth Sir John Phillip William Dankworth, CBE (20 September 1927 – 6 February 2010), also known as Johnny Dankworth, was an English jazz composer, saxophonist, clarinettist and writer of film scores. With his wife, jazz singer Dame Cleo Laine, he ...

, who got him admitted into London's Guildhall School of Music in 1960. During that period, Masekela visited the United States, where he was befriended by

Harry Belafonte Harry Belafonte (born Harold George Bellanfanti Jr.; March 1, 1927) is an American singer, activist, and actor. As arguably the most successful Jamaican-American pop star, he popularized the Trinbagonian Caribbean musical style with an interna ...

. After securing a scholarship back in London, Masekela moved to the United States to attend the

Manhattan School of Music The Manhattan School of Music (MSM) is a private music conservatory in New York City. The school offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in the areas of classical and jazz performance and composition, as well as a bachelor's in mu ...

in New York, where he studied classical trumpet from 1960 to 1964. In 1964,

and Masekela were married, divorcing two years later. He had hits in the US with the pop jazz tunes " Up, Up and Away" (1967) and the number-one smash "

" (1968), which sold four million copies. He also appeared at the

Monterey Pop Festival The Monterey International Pop Festival was a three-day music festival held June 16 to 18, 1967, at the Monterey County Fairgrounds in Monterey, California. The festival is remembered for the first major American appearances by the Jimi Hendrix ...

in 1967, and was subsequently featured in the film ''

Monterey Pop ''Monterey Pop'' is a 1968 American concert film by D. A. Pennebaker that documents the Monterey International Pop Festival of 1967. Among Pennebaker's several camera operators were fellow documentarians Richard Leacock and Albert Maysles. The ...

'' by

D. A. Pennebaker Donn Alan Pennebaker (; July 15, 1925 – August 1, 2019) was an American documentary filmmaker and one of the pioneers of direct cinema. Performing arts and politics were his primary subjects. In 2013, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sci ...

and mentioned in the song ''

Monterey Monterey (; es, Monterrey; Ohlone: ) is a city located in Monterey County on the southern edge of Monterey Bay on the U.S. state of California's Central Coast. Founded on June 3, 1770, it functioned as the capital of Alta California under bot ...

'' by Eric Burdon & the Animals. In 1974, Masekela and friend

Stewart Levine Stewart Levine (born 1946) is an American record producer. He has worked with such artists as The Crusaders, Minnie Riperton, Lionel Richie, Simply Red, Hugh Masekela, Dr. John, Randy Crawford, B.B. King, Huey Lewis and the News, Patti LaBelle ...

organised the

Zaire 74 Zaire 74 was a three-day live music festival that took place on 22 to 24 September 1974 at the Stade du 20 Mai in Kinshasa, Zaire (now Democratic Republic of the Congo). The concert, conceived by South African trumpeter Hugh Masekela and record ...

music festival in

Kinshasa Kinshasa (; ; ln, Kinsásá), formerly Léopoldville ( nl, Leopoldstad), is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Once a site of fishing and trading villages situated along the Congo River, Kinshasa is now one o ...

set around

the Rumble in the Jungle George Foreman vs. Muhammad Ali, billed as ''The Rumble in the Jungle'', was a heavyweight championship boxing match on October 30, 1974, at the 20th of May Stadium (now the Stade Tata Raphaël) in Kinshasa, Zaire (now Democratic Republic of t ...

boxing match. He played primarily in jazz ensembles, with guest appearances on recordings by

the Byrds The Byrds () were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1964. The band underwent multiple lineup changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn (known as Jim McGuinn until mid-1967) remaining the sole cons ...

So You Want to Be a Rock 'n' Roll Star "So You Want to Be a Rock 'n' Roll Star" is a song by the American rock band the Byrds, written by Jim McGuinn and Chris Hillman and included on the band's 1967 album, '' Younger Than Yesterday''. The song was inspired by the manufactured natur ...

" and " Lady Friend") and

Paul Simon Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and actor whose career has spanned six decades. He is one of the most acclaimed songwriters in popular music, both as a solo artist and as half of folk roc ...

("Further to Fly"). In 1984, Masekela released the album ''Techno Bush''; from that album, a single entitled "Don't Go Lose It Baby" peaked at number two for two weeks on the dance charts. In 1987, he had a hit single with " Bring Him Back Home". The song became enormously popular, and turned into an unofficial anthem of the

anti-apartheid movement The Anti-Apartheid Movement (AAM), was a British organisation that was at the centre of the international movement opposing the South African apartheid system and supporting South Africa's non-White population who were persecuted by the policie ...

and an anthem for the movement to free

Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (; ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist who served as the President of South Africa, first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1 ...

. A renewed interest in his African roots led Masekela to collaborate with

West West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sunset, Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic languages, German ...

and Central African musicians, and finally to reconnect with Southern African players when he set up with the help of Jive Records a mobile studio in

Botswana Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label=Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalahar ...

, just over the South African border, from 1980 to 1984. Here he re-absorbed and re-used

mbaqanga Mbaqanga () is a style of South African music with rural Zulu roots that continues to influence musicians worldwide today. The style originated in the early 1960s. History Historically, laws such as the Land Act of 1913 to the Group Areas Ac ...

strains, a style he continued to use following his return to South Africa in the early 1990s. In 1985 Masekela founded the Botswana International School of Music (BISM), which held its first workshop in

Gaborone Gaborone ( , , ) is the capital and largest city of Botswana with a population of 246,325 based on the 2022 census, about 10% of the total population of Botswana. Its agglomeration is home to 421,907 inhabitants at the 2011 census. Gaboron ...

in that year. The event, still in existence, continues as the annual Botswana Music Camp, giving local musicians of all ages and from all backgrounds the opportunity to play and perform together. Masekela taught the jazz course at the first workshop, and performed at the final concert. Also in the 1980s, Masekela toured with

in support of Simon's album ''

Graceland Graceland is a mansion on a estate in Memphis, Tennessee, United States, which was once owned by rock and roll icon Elvis Presley. His daughter, Lisa Marie Presley, inherited Graceland after his death in 1977. Graceland is located at 3764 Elv ...

'', which featured other South African artists such as

Ladysmith Black Mambazo Ladysmith Black Mambazo are a South African male choral group singing in the local vocal styles of '' isicathamiya'' and '' mbube''. They became known internationally after singing with Paul Simon on his 1986 album '' Graceland'', and have won ...

, Miriam Makeba,

Ray Phiri Raymond Chikapa Enock Phiri (23 March 1947 – 12 July 2017) was a South African jazz, fusion and mbaqanga musician born in Mpumalanga to Thabethe Phiri, a Malawian immigrant worker, and South African guitarist nicknamed "Just Now" Phiri. He wa ...

, and other elements of the band

Kalahari The Kalahari Desert is a large semi-arid sandy savanna in Southern Africa extending for , covering much of Botswana, and parts of Namibia and South Africa. It is not to be confused with the Angolan, Namibian, and South African Namib coasta ...

, which was co-founded by guitarist Banjo Mosele and which backed Masekela in the 1980s. As well as recording with Kalahari, he also collaborated in the musical development for the Broadway play '' Sarafina!'', which premiered in 1988. In 2003, he was featured in the documentary film '' Amandla!: A Revolution in Four-Part Harmony''. In 2004, he released his autobiography, ''

Still Grazing ''Still Grazing: The Musical Journey of Hugh Masekela'' is an autobiography book by South African trumpeter Hugh Masekela. It was released on May 11, 2004 by Crown Archetype. The book was written together with D. Michael Cheers. In this book, Mase ...

: The Musical Journey of Hugh Masekela'', co-authored with journalist D. Michael Cheers, which detailed Masekela's struggles against apartheid in his homeland, as well as his personal struggles with alcoholism from the late 1970s to the 1990s. In this period, he migrated, in his personal recording career, to

, jazz/

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

, and the blending of South African sounds, through two albums he recorded with

Herb Alpert Herb Alpert (born March 31, 1935) is an American trumpeter who led the band Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass in the 1960s. During the same decade, he co-founded A&M Records with Jerry Moss. Alpert has recorded 28 albums that have landed on the ...

, and solo recordings, ''

Techno-Bush ''Techno-Bush'' is a 1984 studio album by South African jazz trumpeter Hugh Masekela. It was recorded in Gaborone, Botswana. Reception Robert Christgau stated: "Like Malcolm McLaren with a birthright, Masekela has given up the dull demijazz of h ...

'' (recorded in his studio in Botswana), '' Tomorrow'' (featuring the anthem "Bring Him Back Home"), ''Uptownship'' (a lush-sounding ode to American R&B), ''Beatin' Aroun de Bush'', ''Sixty'', ''Time'', and ''Revival''. His song "

", sung by his former wife, Miriam Makeba, is a

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

/jazz piece that mourns the carnage of the Soweto riots in 1976. He also provided interpretations of songs composed by

Jorge Ben Jorge Duílio Lima Menezes (born March 22, 1939) is a Brazilian popular musician, performing under the stage name Jorge Ben Jor since the 1980s, though commonly known by his former stage name Jorge Ben (). His characteristic style fuses samba ...

Antônio Carlos Jobim Antônio Carlos Brasileiro de Almeida Jobim (25 January 1927 – 8 December 1994), also known as Tom Jobim (), was a Brazilian composer, pianist, guitarist, songwriter, arranger, and singer. Considered one of the great exponents of Brazilian mu ...

Caiphus Semenya Caiphus Semenya (born 19 August 1939) is a South African composer and musician. He was born in Alexandra, Gauteng, Johannesburg, South Africa. He left South Africa for Los Angeles, California, United States, in the 1960s, together with his wife ...

, Dorothy Masuka, and Fela Kuti. In 2006 Masekela was described by Michael A. Gomez, professor of history and Middle Eastern and Islamic studies at

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

as "the father of African jazz." In 2009, Masekela released the album ''Phola'' (meaning "to get well, to heal"), his second recording for 4 Quarters Entertainment/

Times Square Records Time is the continued sequence of existence and events, and a fundamental quantity of measuring systems. Time or times may also refer to: Temporal measurement * Time in physics, defined by its measurement * Time standard, civil time specific ...

. It includes some songs he wrote in the 1980s but never completed, as well as a reinterpretation of "The Joke of Life (Brinca de Vivre)", which he recorded in the mid-1980s. From October 2007, he was a board member of the Woyome Foundation for Africa. In 2010, Masekela was featured, with his son

Selema Masekela Selema "Sal" Mabena Masekela (born August 28, 1971) is an American television host, sports commentator, actor and singer. Life and career Masekela was born in Los Angeles, the son of a Haitian mother and South African jazz musician Hugh Masekela. ...

, in a series of videos on

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...

. The series, called ''Umlando – Through My Father's Eyes'', was aired in 10 parts during ESPN's coverage of the

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament ha ...

in South Africa. The series focused on Hugh's and Selema's travels through South Africa. Hugh brought his son to the places he grew up. It was Selema's first trip to his father's homeland. Hugh-Masakela in 2013

On 3 December 2013, Masekela guested with the

Dave Matthews Band Dave Matthews Band (also known by the initials DMB) is an American rock band formed in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 1991. The band's founding members were singer-songwriter and guitarist Dave Matthews, bassist Stefan Lessard, drummer and bac ...

in Johannesburg, South Africa. He joined

Rashawn Ross Rashawn Ross (born January 16, 1979) is an American trumpeter and arranger from St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands. His contributions in the Dave Matthews Band as a touring member have gained him visibility. Ross is an accomplished session musician. R ...

on trumpet for " Proudest Monkey" and "

". In 2016, at Emperors Palace, Johannesburg, Masekela and Abdullah Ibrahim performed together for the first time in 60 years, reuniting the Jazz Epistles in commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the historic 16 June 1976 youth demonstrations.

Social initiatives

Masekela was involved in several social initiatives, and served as a director on the board of

the Lunchbox Fund The Lunchbox Fund is a non-profit organization providing a daily meal for orphaned and vulnerable school children in township and rural areas of South Africa. The organization was founded by South African model Topaz Page-Green. The Board of Dir ...

, a non-profit organization that provides a daily meal to students of township schools in

Soweto Soweto () is a township of the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality in Gauteng, South Africa, bordering the city's mining belt in the south. Its name is an English syllabic abbreviation for ''South Western Townships''. Formerly a s ...

Personal life and death

From 1964 to 1966 Masekela was married to singer and activist

. He had subsequent marriages to Chris Calloway (daughter of

Cab Calloway Cabell Calloway III (December 25, 1907 – November 18, 1994) was an American singer, songwriter, bandleader, conductor and dancer. He was associated with the Cotton Club in Harlem, where he was a regular performer and became a popular vocalist ...

), Jabu Mbatha, and Elinam Cofie. During the last few years of his life, he lived with the dancer Nomsa Manaka. He was the father of American television host

Sal Masekela Selema "Sal" Mabena Masekela (born August 28, 1971) is an American television host, sports commentator, actor and singer. Life and career Masekela was born in Los Angeles, the son of a Haitian mother and South African jazz musician Hugh Masekela. ...

. Poet, educator, and activist

is his younger sister. Masekela died in

on the early morning of 23 January 2018 from

prostate cancer Prostate cancer is cancer of the prostate. Prostate cancer is the second most common cancerous tumor worldwide and is the fifth leading cause of cancer-related mortality among men. The prostate is a gland in the male reproductive system that sur ...

, aged 78.

Awards and honours

Masekela was honoured with a

Google Doodle A Google Doodle is a special, temporary alteration of the logo on Google's homepages intended to commemorate holidays, events, achievements, and notable historical figures. The first Google Doodle honored the 1998 edition of the long-running an ...

on 4 April 2019, which would have been his 80th birthday. The Doodle depicts Masekela, dressed in colourful shirt, playing a

in front of a banner.

Grammy history

Masekela was nominated for a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

three times, including a nomination for Best World Music Album for his 2012 album '' Jabulani'', one for Best Musical Cast Show Album for '' Sarafina! The Music Of Liberation'' (1989) and one for Best Contemporary Pop Performance for the song "

" (1968).

Honours

Rhodes University Rhodes University is a public university, public research university located in Makhanda, Eastern Cape, Makhanda (Grahamstown) in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. It is one of four universities in the province. Established in 1904, ...

: Doctor of Music (honoris causa), 2015 *

University of York , mottoeng = On the threshold of wisdom , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £8.0 million , budget = £403.6 million , chancellor = Heather Melville , vice_chancellor = Charlie Jeffery , students ...

: Honorary Doctorate in Music 2014 *

Order of Ikhamanga The Order of Ikhamanga is a South African honour. It was instituted on 30 November 2003 and is granted by the President of South Africa for achievements in arts, culture, literature, music, journalism, and sports (which were initially recognised b ...

: 2010 South African National Orders Ceremony, 27 April 2010 *Ghana Music Awards: 2007 African Music Legend award *2005 Channel O Music Video Awards: Lifetime Achievement Award *2002

BBC Radio Jazz Awards The BBC Jazz Awards were set up in 2001 and had the status of one of the premier jazz awards in the United Kingdom (among those presenting the awards were Denis Lawson, Sue Mingus, Humphrey Lyttelton, Ian Carr, Clive James, Mike Gibbs, Julian Jo ...

: International Award of the Year *Nominated for Broadway's 1988

Tony Award for Best Score The Tony Award for Best Original Score is the Tony Award given to the composers and lyricists of the best original score written for a musical or play in that year. The score consists of music and/or lyrics. To be eligible, a score must be writt ...

(Musical), with music and lyrics collaborator

Mbongeni Ngema Mbongeni Ngema (born 1 June 1956) is a South African writer, lyricist, composer, director, choreographer and theatre producer, born in Verulam, KwaZulu-Natal (near Durban). He started his career as a theatre backing guitarist. He wrote the mu ...

, for '' Sarafina!'' *2016

MTV Africa Music Awards The MTV Africa Music Awards (also known as the MAMAs) were established in 2008 by MTV Networks Africa (now Viacom International Media Networks Africa) to celebrate the most popular contemporary music in Africa. The 2008 and 2010 events took pla ...

(MAMAs): Legend Award

Discography

Albums

Chart singles

Autobiography

* With D. Michael Cheers (2004). '' Still Grazing: The Musical Journey of Hugh Masekela'',

Crown A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, partic ...

References

External links

Official website

"Hugh Masekela – Legend of South African Music"
a backstage interview with NYC Radio LIVE!, 2013
"Hugh Masekela archive interview"
- a video interview with

Robin Denselow Robin Denselow is a British writer, journalist, and broadcaster. Education Denselow was educated at Leighton Park School, a boys' Quaker boarding independent school (now co-educational) in Reading, Berkshire Reading ( ) is a town and borough ...

of ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', 2011
"A conversation with musician Hugh Masekela"
– a video interview on '' Charlie Rose'', 2009
"Still Grazing - Hugh Masekela on coming home from exile"
by Hugh Masekela and D. Michael Cheers, book extract at News24
"Hugh Masekela - Musician and Activist"
– interview with

Zeinab Badawi Zeinab Badawi ( ar, زينب بدوي; born October 1959) is a Sudanese-British television and radio journalist. She was the first presenter of the ''ITV Morning News'' (later known as '' ITV News at 5:30''), and co-presented ''Channel 4 News'' ...

for ''

HardTalk ''HARDtalk'' is a BBC television and radio programme broadcast on the BBC News Channel, on BBC World News, and on the BBC World Service. Broadcast times and days vary, depending on broadcasting platform and geographic location. ''HARDtalk' ...

'' at BBC News, 2015 {{DEFAULTSORT:Masekela, Hugh 1939 births 2018 deaths Jazz cornetists South African jazz trumpeters South African expatriates in the United States Alumni of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama Heads Up International artists Jive Records artists Mercury Records artists MGM Records artists Uni Records artists Verve Records artists Anti-apartheid activists South African autobiographers South African jazz composers People from Witbank Recipients of the Order of Ikhamanga Deaths from prostate cancer Deaths from cancer in South Africa The Jazz Epistles members Burials at Westpark Cemetery 20th-century South African male singers 21st-century South African male singers Blue Thumb Records artists