Ladysmith Black Mambazo’s Grammy Hopes

Ladysmith Black Mambazo will find out this weekend if they are going to add a fourth Grammy statue to their collection. There are only four nominees in the Best World Music category but they have some stiff competition from the likes of Tinariwen and Femi Kuti. But, as Albert Mazibuko the group’s spokesperson says, they’re using this time to celebrate how far they’ve come as a group. “This music that has been nominated is the music we used to sing as children, so it’s amazing to think of where we are now and that it is being recognized.”

LBM have achieved much in their 50-year career. Albert told me that the one thing they still want to do is work with a hip hop group because they want to hear someone translate their message in a different way. I asked him if he’d heard of Die Antwoord yet. He said no, but seemed to like the idea of them. Now that would be a collaboration!

The group is currently on tour in the US so won’t be at the awards ceremony as they’ll be performing in Delaware on the night. But they’ll be hoping to get a phone-call bearing some good news.

The Grammys take place on Sunday 12 February.