South Africa mourns pop diva Fassie

JOHANNESBURG – South Africa was yesterday mourning the loss of pop diva Brenda Fassie and remembered a cultural icon who shaped the spirit of her generation.

“Brenda is gone. She was not only a South African singer, but a pan-African griot, making souls rise in bliss wherever her voice reached,” said President Thabo Mbeki in a statement.”Death has this time robbed this country, Africa and the world of one of the greatest talents to come out of the township of Langa in Cape Town,” said lawyer Leslie Sedibe from her record label EMI Music, quoted on the Sapa news agency.”Brenda occupied a special place in the minds and hearts of many people around the world.Indeed, a hero has fallen,” he said.Both the country’s largest labour federation, the Congress of South African Trade Unions and the South African Communist Party hailed Fassie as a woman who “rose from a working class township to become an icon”.South Africa’s first black pop star, she gave a voice to disenfranchised blacks at the height of apartheid, winning legions of fans in poverty-stricken townships in Johannesburg and across Africa.Her songs dealt with township life, love and pain.She sang about the dreams of black youths and the struggle against apartheid, especially on ‘Black President’, which spoke of a revolution in South Africa that would crush apartheid.Despite achieving fame, she never forgot her humble roots.Fassie, a Xhosa born in the Langa township of Cape Town in 1964, was equally famous for her piercing voice and her wild child image, admitting publicly to drug abuse and numerous love affairs with both sexes.The Lesbian and Gay Equality Project, dedicated to the advancement of the rights of homosexuals in South Africa, said: “In our community we thank her for entertaining us, but also for supporting our charitable causes.”Fassie’s breakthrough came in 1983 with the song ‘Weekend Special’ which topped the charts and received wide international play.Despite fighting a debilitating drug addiction and the death of her lesbian lover in the mid-1990s, Fassie made a comeback in 1998, winning several South African and African music awards.”The country has lost a cultural icon, who helped shape the sound and spirit of her generation,” said the ruling African National Congress party.Fassie’s family set up an information line to allow fans and supporters to hear details of funeral arrangements, send and listen to messages of condolence, and hear some of her songs.Arts and Culture Minister Pallo Jordan said “the people of South Africa have lost a wonderfully talented daughter and artist.But she will live on in all our hearts through her music.”No arrangements for her funeral had been made public yet, but there were reports that she would be buried in Langa, where she first became famous.- Nampa-AFP-ReutersShe was not only a South African singer, but a pan-African griot, making souls rise in bliss wherever her voice reached,” said President Thabo Mbeki in a statement.”Death has this time robbed this country, Africa and the world of one of the greatest talents to come out of the township of Langa in Cape Town,” said lawyer Leslie Sedibe from her record label EMI Music, quoted on the Sapa news agency.”Brenda occupied a special place in the minds and hearts of many people around the world.Indeed, a hero has fallen,” he said.Both the country’s largest labour federation, the Congress of South African Trade Unions and the South African Communist Party hailed Fassie as a woman who “rose from a working class township to become an icon”.South Africa’s first black pop star, she gave a voice to disenfranchised blacks at the height of apartheid, winning legions of fans in poverty-stricken townships in Johannesburg and across Africa.Her songs dealt with township life, love and pain.She sang about the dreams of black youths and the struggle against apartheid, especially on ‘Black President’, which spoke of a revolution in South Africa that would crush apartheid.Despite achieving fame, she never forgot her humble roots.Fassie, a Xhosa born in the Langa township of Cape Town in 1964, was equally famous for her piercing voice and her wild child image, admitting publicly to drug abuse and numerous love affairs with both sexes.The Lesbian and Gay Equality Project, dedicated to the advancement of the rights of homosexuals in South Africa, said: “In our community we thank her for entertaining us, but also for supporting our charitable causes.”Fassie’s breakthrough came in 1983 with the song ‘Weekend Special’ which topped the charts and received wide international play.Despite fighting a debilitating drug addiction and the death of her lesbian lover in the mid-1990s, Fassie made a comeback in 1998, winning several South African and African music awards.”The country has lost a cultural icon, who helped shape the sound and spirit of her generation,” said the ruling African National Congress party.Fassie’s family set up an information line to allow fans and supporters to hear details of funeral arrangements, send and listen to messages of condolence, and hear some of her songs.Arts and Culture Minister Pallo Jordan said “the people of South Africa have lost a wonderfully talented daughter and artist.But she will live on in all our hearts through her music.”No arrangements for her funeral had been made public yet, but there were reports that she would be buried in Langa, where she first became famous.- Nampa-AFP-Reuters