PJ Powers (born 16 July 1960, Durban) is a South African singer and performer. She became a household name in southern Africa after the widespread success of the song “Jabulani”. When she played at the Jabulani Amphitheatre in 1983 she was hailed by the crowd with the name “Thandeka”. On the stage she drank from a calabash as part of the performance to the delight of the audience. ''World in Union 95'', the

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 m ...

version featuring PJ Powers, became an international hit record in 1995. It reached no. 47 in the UK singles charts. P J Powers garnered attention for her human rights advocacy, philanthropy, and activism against apartheid.

Early life and career

PJ Powers was born in

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

Natal Province The Province of Natal (), commonly called Natal, was a province of South Africa from May 1910 until May 1994. Its capital was Pietermaritzburg. During this period rural areas inhabited by the black African population of Natal were organized into ...

(now in

KwaZulu-Natal KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN and known as "the garden province") is a province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu) and Natal Province were merged. It is locate ...

), South Africa on 16 July 1960. Her singing career kicked off in 1979 when she became the lead singer of an all female group called Pantha. It disbanded after a year. PJ Powers went on to front a new band, Hotline. Their sound, afro-pop fusion music framing PJ Powers' distinctive voice, attracted an expanded, cross cultural fan base. The band lasted for seven years and produced some of the biggest local hits of the 1980s. The formula of young, energetic musicians performing vibrant music in all areas was well accepted by their youthful target audience. PJ was then given the name Thandeka meaning "Loved One" by the people of South Africa, a name she continued to hold true to her heart. Hotline took music to the people. This increased their popularity and grew their fan base in the neighbouring countries of Botswana, Mozambique and Namibia. Combining music that people could dance to with messages of hope and reconciliation was different to what was played on the radio at the time. “You're so good to me” (1982) written by PJ Powers was her first big hit. Powers followed up by writing some hits such as ''I Feel So Strong'' (1983 duet with Steve Kekana), ''Home to Africa'' (1985), ''There Is an Answer'' (1986) Hotline disbanded in 1987 and subsequently Powers pursued a solo career.

Solo career

1988: P.J Powers was. banned from radio and TV for a year by the

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 ...

government for her performance at a charity concert for war orphans in

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...

, along 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 African popular music, Afropop, jazz, a ...

and

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 ...

. She was encouraged to continue her singing by

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 ...

, who sent her an encouraging letter from

Victor Verster Prison Drakenstein Correctional Centre (formerly Victor Verster Prison) is a low-security prison between Paarl and Franschhoek, on the R301 road 5 km from the R45 Huguenot Road, in the valley of the Dwars River in the Western Cape of South Africa. ...

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 ...

. 1990: - Power's music developed the Afropop genre further, cementing her receptive audience in the black market. 1995: The Ladysmith Black Mambazo recording "

World in Union "World in Union" is a theme song for the Rugby World Cup. Its melody is "Thaxted (tune), Thaxted", from the middle section of "Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity", a movement (music), movement from Gustav Holst's ''The Planets'', and was originally a ...

" (feat P J Powers) reached no. 47 on the UK Singles Chart. She performed the song live at the opening of the

Rugby World Cup The Rugby World Cup is a men's rugby union tournament contested every four years between the top international teams. The tournament is administered by World Rugby, the sport's international governing body. The winners are awarded the Webb E ...

in Cape Town for a worldwide television audience. P J Powers has shared the stage with

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is often regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s list of ...

Joan Armatrading Joan Anita Barbara Armatrading, (, born 9 December 1950) is a Kittitian-English singer-songwriter and guitarist. A three-time Grammy Award nominee, Armatrading has also been nominated twice for BRIT Awards as Best Female Artist. She received ...

Hugh Masekela Hugh Ramapolo Masekela (4 April 1939 – 23 January 2018) was a South African trumpeter, flugelhornist, cornetist, singer and composer who was described as "the father of South African jazz". Masekela was known for his jazz compositions and for ...

Divine Divas Divinity or the divine are things that are either related to, devoted to, or proceeding from a deity.divine

, Lord

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Richard E. Grant Richard E. Grant (born Richard Grant Esterhuysen; 5 May 1957) is a Swazi-English actor and presenter. He made his film debut as Withnail in the comedy ''Withnail and I'' (1987). Grant received critical acclaim for his role as Jack Hock in Marie ...

Sibongile Khumalo Sibongile Khumalo (24 September 1957 – 28 January 2021) was a South African singer and song writer. She sang classical, jazz, opera and traditional South African music. She was noted for singing at the inauguration of Nelson Mandela in 199 ...

Janet Suzman Dame Janet Suzman, (born 9 February 1939) is a South African-born British actress who enjoyed a successful early career in the Royal Shakespeare Company, later replaying many Shakespearean roles, among others, on TV. In her first film, ''Nicho ...

and others. She sang for Queen Elizabeth of the United Kingdom,

King Juan Carlos King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

of Spain,

Queen Beatrix Beatrix (Beatrix Wilhelmina Armgard, ; born 31 January 1938) is a member of the Dutch royal house who reigned as Queen of the Netherlands from 1980 until her abdication in 2013. Beatrix is the eldest daughter of Queen Juliana and her husband ...

of the Netherlands and at the inauguration of President Nelson Mandela. She collaborated with

Vicky Sampson Vicky, Vicko, Vick, Vickie or Vicki is a feminine given name, often a hypocorism of Victoria. The feminine name Vicky in Greece comes from the name Vasiliki. Women * Family nickname of Victoria, Princess Royal (1840–1901), wife of German ...

Yvonne Chaka Chaka Yvonne Chaka Chaka (born Yvonne Machaka on 18 March 1965) is a South African singer, songwriter, actress, entrepreneur, humanitarian and teacher. Dubbed the "Princess of Africa" (a name she received after a 1990 tour), Chaka Chaka has been at t ...

and M'du Masilela for the music video flighted at the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

Assembly in Washington, D.C. and in Greece. 2009: Powers' recording of "

" was featured in the

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

–nominated film, ''

Invictus "Invictus" is a short poem by the Victorian era British poet William Ernest Henley (1849–1903). It was written in 1875 and published in 1888 in his first volume of poems, ''Book of Verses'', in the section ''Life and Death (Echoes)''. Backgr ...

''. 2019: 33 years later - Don Clarke and P J Powers perform ''Sanbonani'' together on the Legends Stage at Splashy Fen.

Honours and awards

*1986: Won the SABC Song for South Africa competition with ''Sanbonani'', a reconciliation song written by

Don Clarke Donald Barry Clarke (10 November 1933 – 29 December 2002) was a New Zealand rugby union player who played 89 times (31 of these were test matches) as a New Zealand international from 1956 until 1964. He was best known for his phenomena ...

*2000: Nelson Mandela presented Powers with a commemorative limited edition gold coin *2007: Appointed as a South African Tourism Ambassador *2003: June: The Institute for Justice and Reconciliation honoured P J Powers and Sibongile Khumalo with their prestigious annual award, promoting reconciliation by "singing people together" *2004: Voted 93rd in the Top 100 Great South Africans. *2003: September: Supermarket chain

Pick 'n Pay Stores The Pick n Pay Group is a retail business in the fast-moving consumer goods industry. The Group operates through multiple store formats under three brands – Pick n Pay, Boxer and TM Supermarkets. Pick n Pay also operates one of the largest on ...

nominated her as one of their "Stars of Charity" recognising that she "made a difference in uplifting the youth of South Africa" * 2013: July: Honoured with a Living Legends award *2021: July: Honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the

27th South African Music Awards The 27th Annual South African Music Awards were the 27th edition of the South African Music Awards. The award show was broadcast live on SABC 1 on July 31, 2021 and was held virtually due to the effects of COVID-19 lockdowns. The nominees were a ...

Powers has been extensively involved with the Reach For a Dream Foundation, as well as the Hamlet Foundation. She was commissioned by the President's office to write and perform a song for the Children's Rights Commission.

External links

* *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Powers, Pj 1960 births Living people 21st-century South African women singers South African pop singers White South African anti-apartheid activists 20th-century South African women singers