Ladysmith Black Mambazo
Worldwide
The next Ladysmith Black Mambazo concert is scheduled for Saturday, July 19, 2025 at Shea Theater in Turners Falls, MA, United States. See all 9 upcoming concerts
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Ladysmith Black Mambazo's Popular Music Videos
![Watch Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes (with Ladysmith Black Mambazo) [Live] music video by Paul Simon](/mkimage/image/thumb/Video51/v4/6b/ef/9c/6bef9c00-86bc-f01c-7b88-d9f64b1ad642/8864465129140101VIC.jpg/575x575mv.webp "Watch Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes (with Ladysmith Black Mambazo) [Live] music video by Paul Simon")
![Watch Homeless (with Ladysmith Black Mambazo) [Live from The Concert in Hyde Park] music video by Paul Simon](/mkimage/image/thumb/Video116/v4/06/6d/e0/066de08c-df4c-c7b0-9c1d-4912814d10f9/8864472847660101.jpg/575x575mv.webp "Watch Homeless (with Ladysmith Black Mambazo) [Live from The Concert in Hyde Park] music video by Paul Simon")
![Watch I Know What I Know (with Ladysmith Black Mambazo) [from The Concert in Hyde Park] music video by Paul Simon](/mkimage/image/thumb/Video128/v4/c0/09/8d/c0098d12-bec7-35cf-870a-063fc20101e2/8864472847730101.jpg/575x575mv.webp "Watch I Know What I Know (with Ladysmith Black Mambazo) [from The Concert in Hyde Park] music video by Paul Simon")
![Watch I Shall Be There (feat. Ladysmith Black Mambazo) [Live on Blue Peter, Christmas 1999] music video by B*Witched](/mkimage/image/thumb/Video116/v4/5c/d4/a5/5cd4a5e2-ac31-a938-ce67-9605f0475c15/1965899125410101.jpg/575x575mv.webp "Watch I Shall Be There (feat. Ladysmith Black Mambazo) [Live on Blue Peter, Christmas 1999] music video by B*Witched")
![Watch I Shall Be There (feat. Ladysmith Black Mambazo) [Live from Top of the Pops, 1999] music video by B*Witched](/mkimage/image/thumb/Video126/v4/c0/1c/fb/c01cfb17-7ad5-50f6-ea6a-e0d583d1fc32/1965898664620101.jpg/575x575mv.webp "Watch I Shall Be There (feat. Ladysmith Black Mambazo) [Live from Top of the Pops, 1999] music video by B*Witched")
About Ladysmith Black Mambazo
Hometown
Ladysmith, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
Formed
1964
Genre
Worldwide
Ladysmith Black Mambazo first burst to international attention when Paul Simon showcased their breathtaking, call-and-response choral music on his 1986 album, Graceland. But this South African all-male vocal group had been around for decades before Simon showed up, and they’ve remained a global-scale musical institution ever since. The concept for the ensemble literally came to founding member Joseph Shabalala in a dream: The singer from the KwaZulu-Natal region claimed that, in the early ’60s, he was visited multiple times in his slumber by an ensemble of robed children singing in perfect harmony. The dreams inspired him to write his own music based on the tender isicathamiya vocal style popular among Zulu miners, and he dubbed his new group Ladysmith Black Mambazo in tribute to his hometown (Ladysmith), the black ox, and the axe (“mambazo” in Zulu). The group have released dozens of albums and won numerous Grammys over the decades, and their richly layered, gospel-tinged compositions have translated well in collaborations with stars as varied as Dolly Parton and David Guetta. Shabalala retired from the group in 2014—six years before his passing—leaving his sons in charge, and today Ladysmith Black Mambazo continue to deliver a message of beautiful human harmony.
Members of Ladysmith Black Mambazo include, or have included, Joseph Shabalala.
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