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key:

pink = early life

orange = early career (1950s)

green = life prior to exile from america (1960s)

teal = visits for african independence concerts (1960s)

blue = later life

Here is the black man Verwoerd"

Her initial signing to the company RCA Victor did not emphasise her heritage, but her later one did as America's interest in 'world music' grew.

This change is visible in her album covers, which changed to show more traditional clothing, with some including the South African flag as well.

This development tracks her life as a pioneer in bringing her culture, and plight, to the broader global sphere.

Follow the link to see all of her album covers.

· Known as ‘Mama Afrika’ – many songs that stood up to and directly confronted the Apartheid regime

· Swazi mother and Xhosa father

· Many songs sung in Xhosa and Zulu- helped introduce the Western world to these cultures

· Went to America in 1959 and was denied re entry to South Africa in 1960 – lived in exile for 3 decades

· Makeba and Belafonte won a Grammy Award for best folk recording in 1965

· Nelson Mandela encouraged her to return to South Afrika in 1991 for the first time since her exile

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Miriam-Makeba

https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/african-musicians-music-fight-inequality-injustice/#:~:text=(Ndodemnyama)”.,Africa%20and%20banned%20from%20returning.

https://victorjara42.wordpress.com/tag/meaning-behind-makebas-beware-verwoerd/

https://www.carnegiehall.org/Explore/Articles/2021/04/08/South-Africas-Protest-Music

https://miriammakeba.bandcamp.com/album/keep-me-in-mind-remastered

https://genius.com/4478716?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lNeP3hrm__k

• Growing up she would sneak out to attend choir rehearsals

• The choir she was apart of were suppose to sing for King George vi's visit but he drove past them after the had been waiting in the rain

• She was encouraged by the director of the show to compete in singing competitions 

• She left for Johannesburg in her 20s in pursuit of a career in music, where she joined a group called The Cuban Boys

• Miriam Makeba & the Shylarks song ‘Remember Sophiatown’ is a direct reference to the events of the apartheid in 1954 where people were evicted from their homes so that the town would only house white people

• She participated in a film called ‘Come Back Africa’ which was released in 1959, Lionel Rogosin secretly filmed the harsh conditions black people were facing during this time and asked her to participate. This also became a large reason for her international success. However she was exiled from South Africa because of her involvement in this film. She wasn’t able to return for her mother funeral either

www.britannica.com