Mafikizolo,Re-united to storm the
world. pix: Paul Munene
The first phenomenon one has to
address in this song is the Language.
The song was written and sung in the
Zulu Language. And in some part of the
song; it did flirt with other local
Languages. Some Zulus from a
province called Mpumalanga are
influenced by an inland country called
Swaziland, so they tend to mix their
vowels. It has a feel of English too –
Rose and Mama. But then, Mama is
one of those words that its meaning is
universal. Mama means Mother in
almost all languages. And Zulu is not
an exception.
To understand this song – Khona, one
has to understand the personal lives of
the members of the Mafikizolo Band,
and Uhuru also. The members of
Mafikizolo are Theo Kgosinkwe,
Nhlanhla Nciza, and Tebogo
Madingoane. And the genre of music
this group make is called Kwaito. Their
kind of song can be called Afro-Pop. It
has a peculiar Angolian-Swahili feel
too. Quite eccentric, at least, to we non-
South Africans.
Khona, is one of the tracks in their
February (2013) released album titled –
Reunited, same being their first album
since they went solo in 2008. From the
lyrics of the song one will see that
Reunited is not just the persons
reuniting but a unification of their
experiences in sonorous-lines. Khona is
a sample of one of the tracks that
unites their sad experiences.
Once upon a trio.
Before one goes into their personal
experiences, it is pertinent to
understand or have an idea what Khona
means. Khona means ‘there’ or ‘at that
place’. So the song is more of a
dialogue-type song. So for every
persons mentioned in the song; Khona
is a rhetorical call to them to ‘come
back. So all of them that are ‘there’, at
that ‘other side’ or ‘that place’ should
come back. Its kind of a sad plea.
Khona being an euphemism for death’s
hades and cracks of a broken heart.
Even Theo’s dance of throwing his
arms and thighs in the forward and
then backward direction portrays the
come-back-Khona message.
So the question arises, who are these
people the Mafikizolo sang this song
for? One of the Trio of Mafikizolo is
Tebogo Madingoane. Amidst the peak
of their success in 2004, on the 14th of
February to be precise; Tebogo, one of
the male singers was shot after an
argument got heated with another driver
in traffic. His death touched the spines
of the Mafikizolo and it has always
been in their hearts since then.
we are back to tell our story.
Nhlanhla Nciza, the only lady of the
Trio also had her share of misfortune
when she lost her 5 year old daughter,
Zinathi, in a car accident in December,
2009. Her death and request to come
back was portrayed at the end of the
music video where the smoke from the
ghastly car which was suppose to
disperse in the air, was seen reverting
back into the car from the car’s
windscreen. The pains of a bereaved
mum was also evident in her choice of
attires and gestures. The first verse of
the song was for Tebogo and the
second was for her daughter. The third
one was for Theo’s Rose and the fourth
was for Uhuru’s Mum.
From the lyrics, it is evident that Theo
Kgosinkwe lost his love; Rose, who is
either his sister, daughter or lover. His
call for Sesi Rose to come back was
deep and passionate. Sitting on a black
horse which is known to represent
strength and power is a show of his
graphic toast to Rose. Perhaps, those
are the qualities that were missing in
Theo hitherto. Hence, his persistent call
and show. Like a Knight riding back
from a war he was victorious.
It is evident from the lyrics that Uhuru
who is not a member of the Mafikizolo
also had a piece of the sad cake; his
mother. With the name Uhuru, what
readily comes to mind is the Lesotho
70′s and 80′s band. Or better still, the
South American Black Uhuru Band. Or
perhaps, the Kenyan’s Uhuru Kenyatta.
Uhuru however, is a Swahilian word
that means Freedom. Whether this
Uhuru is an offshoot of the Black
Jesus’ Uhuru is yet unknown. But one
thing is clear, this Uhuru sings. And he
does it well. Singing is the only thing he
would do if he wasn’t singing – that
wasn’t a typo. His dramatic
performance and passion about his
demised Mum was Captivating. It got
me replaying the song over and over.
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The song Khona is a sad love song but
one with a beam of optimistic
hopelessness. We’ve all lost something.
And we all miss something. For all of
us that have lost and missed
something, and wish it to come back;
this song is for us. Khona to our
demised friends and family. Khona to
our broken hearts. Khona to those
strangers that gave us a good smile
whilst walking past. Khona to those
lost precious times. Albeit a lost call,
its still uplifting to yearn for them.
Perhaps, just perhaps, we may have
them back. Maybe not in person; they
always can reincarnate in others.
As a Nigerian, the nostalgia of the
utopia that used to exist makes us
listen, dance and sing-along to Khona.
Its a call for our basic human rights. A
call for peace, unity and progress. A
call to Glory!
