Mama Hilda still has music in her
“If we don’t perform, we don’t make money and then we can’t survive."
Kwa-Thema – “Covid-19 has taken so much from all of us, especially performing artists.
“If you didn’t lose a loved one, you might have lost your job or business. We are all somehow affected.”
These are the words of Kwa-Thema resident Hilda Tloubatla, the only original member left of the Mahotella Queens, a South African female band.
Before President Cyril Ramaphosa announced the level five lockdown last year, the group had lined-up an international tour in Germany.
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This never happened as travelling abroad at the time was prohibited.
“You know, as artists, we depend heavily on performances for survival, especially when we get international gigs.
“If we don’t perform, we don’t make money and then we can’t survive.
“I am 79 years old. I can’t risk my health and travel for performances,” she said.
Tloubatla added the group is working on its new album.
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“I still have a lot of music in me and will only retire when God tells me to.
“Now that some of the original members of the group have either died or left, I train the new female members on the culture of the group, the dance moves and types of songs.
“There is no reason for us to change the recipe that has worked for decades,” she explained.
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