#30yearsofDemocracy l #Freedom l #censorship
What should a black artist do when he wanted to write a song about how much he missed Nelson Mandela, but he couldn’t because it was the 1980s and apartheid censorship was at its peak? A time when the mere mention of the Black Pimpernel would result in apartheid’s censors breaking out in a red rash and either banning your song or inviting you for a chat in a soundproof room at the top floor of John Vorster Square. Faced with these dire scenarios, musician Sello ‘Chicco’ Twala decided to create an elaborate ruse with his song lyrics, a ruse worthy of the big man, Nelson Mandela, himself.
We miss you Manelow was an apartheid protest song written and sung by Chicco. It was released in 1987 and became entrenched in the South African pop culture. Chicco’s record was certified triple-platinum by RISA (The Recording Industry of South Africa). Chicco evaded apartheid censorship by using the word ‘Manelow’—a similar sounding word—for Mandela. The lyrics of the song were deliberately inoffensive, and the apartheid censors were not alerted to the politically charged messages when reading them. The words were kept very simple, the song started with the chorus repeating three times ‘We miss you Manelow.’ It was immediately followed by a post-chorus line ‘Uphe uManelow, aheh?’, which was also repeated three times. To keep up the ruse, the music video accompanying the release of the song elaborated about a story of a young girl named Manelow, who left home and who was missed by her loved ones.
In reality, Chicco was adding his voice to the international campaign for the release of the jailed freedom fighter and anti-apartheid activist Nelson Mandela. The masses in South Africa were crying for the release of Mandela and for the end to the repressive regime. The innocuous lyrics of the song reflected the subversive mood of the populace and raised political consciousness.
Unlike international artists who could openly sing songs criticising apartheid and the imprisonment of activists, performers living in South Africa did not have those freedoms. In 1985, a US artist Stevie Wonder did not mince his words when he released his anti-apartheid protest song Its wrong (Apartheid). Wonder’s song lyrics openly said that apartheid was evil and wrong, and he compared it to slavery and the Holocaust. In 1980, British singer Peter Gabriel released a song called Biko to condemn the assassination of Steve Biko, an anti-apartheid activist who was killed in 1977 while in police custody.
The Publications Act of 1974 allowed for the apartheid regime to censor a wide variety of publications including music. The Directorate of Publications was a state body that dealt with censorship-related complaints. If a song became censored, it was banned in South Africa, and this would be devastating as it would affect singers’ ability to earn a living through music. The state-controlled South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) also played a role in enforcing censorship by deciding what music was allowed to be played on the radio. Therefore, South African artists who produced protests songs had to be very creative to avoid restrictions. After Nelson Mandela was released from prison in February 1990, many artists released songs to honour him and this time, they were unconcerned about the apartheid control.
Through his music, Chicco became one of the artists who kept the messages of freedom and hope alive during the dark days of apartheid in the 1980s. His musical legacy is that he contributed to bringing about democracy to South Africa. Born in Soweto in 1963, Chicco enjoyed a very successful career as a musician, a composer, and a producer. He was honoured with two Lifetime Achievement Awards, the first by SAMA in 2004 and the second at the Metro FM Music Awards in 2013. He is also well known for producing albums for iconic singers like Brenda Fassie, Yvonne Chaka Chaka and Lebo M. He was instrumental in leading Brenda Fassie to also sing songs that had political messages. Chicco wrote and produced two politically charged songs which Fassie sang—Too late for Mama (1989) and Black President (1990). He also released other protest music like his album Soldier, which was released in 1989.
References
Mojapelo, M. 2008. Beyond memory: recording the history, moments, and memories of South African music. Somerset West: African Minds. https://www.africanbookscollective.com/books/beyond-memory
Schumann, A. 2008. The beat that beat apartheid: The role of music in the resistance against apartheid in South Africa. Stichproben. Wiener Zeitschrift für kritische Afrikastudien / Vienna Journal of African Studies 8(14), 17–39. https://stichproben.univie.ac.at/fileadmin/user_upload/p_stichproben/Artikel/Nummer14/Nr14_Schumann.pdf
Walubengo, P. 2019. Chicco Twala biography: son, home language, songs, albums, house, and contact details. Briefly, 17.07.2019. https://briefly.co.za/33548-chicco-twala-biography-son-home-language-songs-albums-house-contact-details.html (accessed on 20 March 2024)
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