Thobile Magagula and Gcebile and Bongiwe Dlamini, make up the indigenous Afrocentric musical trio called Spirits Indigenous who travelled all the way from Swaziland to Grahamstown to perform at the Festival this year.
Thobile Magagula and Gcebile and Bongiwe Dlamini, make up the indigenous Afrocentric musical trio called Spirits Indigenous who travelled all the way from Swaziland to Grahamstown to perform at the Festival this year.
The three sisters deliver raw indigenous sounds to create what they consider as a voice from the distant past.
Accompanied by acoustic instruments such as drums, amafahlangwane (shakers), makhoyane (a traditional Xhosa uhadi bow instrument) and jews-harp, the show features singer Nathi Njamela.
The Swazi trio did not only leave the audience bewildered but also exposed the originality which most of today’s youth have lost through the neglect of their own cultures and customs.
Thobile says that with their lifestyle and music they venture out on a journey to restore African pride which seems to have been lost, especially among the youth.
“We are inspired by our culture in Swaziland and through the Spirit Indigenous movement we are to preserve it.” says Thobile.
It is rare to see other young people finding any interest in cultural lifestyles, as the core part of traditional cultures in Africa is mostly extinct.
But this group feels that it is their duty to keep it alive and eventually pass it on to future generations. “In certain places the music is viewed in a negative way, especially by the youth, but when we appear with our traditional ways they too feel a sense of going back to their roots,” says Gcebile.
The artists have had great success individually as they each recorded a song for the compilation called Te ma Swati which was launched in May this year with seven other Swaziland artists. With the warm support from fans, Spirit Indigenous is sure to return to Grahamstown next year.
