On Tuesday night, Lee Hall Auditorium will be the site of a concert very different from most of the acts that come through Mississippi State and Starkville. Ladysmith Black Mambazo, a Grammy Award winning South African vocal group, will be performing in continuance of the MSU Lyceum Series. “This is going to be one of our special shows,” said Russell Huntley, graduate assistant to the Lyceum series. “It has a different feel to it.”
The show has already created a stir locally, as all tickets available for reservation have sold out. General admission will still be available at the doors, however.
Ladysmith Black Mambazo’s music has a spiritual, gospel feel to it; but the central message of its music is paying homage to Shaka Zulu, an African warrior and leader of the Zulu Empire from the early 19th century.
“He was a warrior, an athlete, a singer, a dancer, a visionary,” Joseph Shabalala, lead singer of Ladysmith Black Mambazo, said of Shaka Zulu. “He was so many things.”
The group’s historical message and spiritual sound combine in its music for a very unique sound.
“The music has a lot of history to it,” Huntley said. “They talk about the history of South Africa. The sound is what’s very unique with the group. That’s what gives a spiritual [side] to it.”
The group’s name references its South African roots. According to Huntley, Ladysmith is the name of Joseph’s rural hometown in South Africa. Black is a reference to oxen, which the group considers the strongest of all farm animals. And Mambazo is the Zulu word for “axe.”
“The axe is the group’s ability to chop down any singing rival,” Huntley said.
Ladysmith Black Mambazo was first formed in the mid 1960s and quickly rose to local acclaim. Then, in 1986, the group met Paul Simon and was featured on his album Graceland.
The group’s performance will feature a limited amount of instrumental accompaniment, but it’s their unique vocals that are at the center of their music.
“There are fifteen guys, and they’re all singers,” Huntley said. “There will be instruments, but it’s pretty much a vocal deal.”
The Lyceum Series chose to bring Ladysmith Black Mambazo in hopes to bring an entirely unique flavor of music to campus.
“We have a board that decides [what groups to bring to campus],” Huntley said. “They wanted a new group in Starkville that the community hadn’t seen before.”
In addition to MSU students, all members of the community are welcome.
“It’s a very family-oriented thing,” Huntley said.
The show will take place tonight at 7:30 in Lee Hall Auditorium. MSU students get in free with their MSU I.D. Adult non-student tickets are $15, Senior Citizen tickets are available for $10 by request and children’s tickets are $8.
“It’s going to be a really good show,” Huntley said. “It’s going to be something different to see. It should be a crowd pleaser.