Maraqana Siphokazi was born in Lusikisiki, Eastern Cape, South Africa where she attended primary school at Kwa-zizamele and Toli Secondary School. She then enrolled at Sibikwa Community Art Centre in Johannesburg in 1999.
In 2000, she received a bursary from The National Arts Council, enabling her to enroll at Central Johannesburg College, where she completed her diploma in Music Technology. She honed her talent as a back up singer for some of the South Africa’s top talents such as Ringo Madlingozi, Pat Matshikiza, Simphiwe Dana, Tshepo Tsola, Zama Jobe and Stimela.
She is married to Hlalele Mohapi and is a mother of two. She however says it is not easy juggling a career in music and a family.
“I am blessed to have a supportive and understanding family. My husband is my manager and he does the extra things that I believe any other manager would not do.”
“But it is still not easy to juggle because as a mother, I want to care for my children in a certain way. So for this, I really appreciate the people around me who sacrifice for me to be comfortable enough to do my work the way I do,” she adds.
Siphokazi is involved in charity work, hosting concerts for underprivileged families and supporting women and children’s homes as part of her philanthropy work.
“It is important to me because the Bible tells us we must help others, and to love our neighbours as we love ourselves. So charity work is an act of love for me. It is my way of showing that I care,” she says.
She released her first hit single, 'Amacala' in 2006. She says 'Amacala' is a revolutionary song calling for decent treatment of women by society through nurturing, love and protection.
Her debut album 'Ubuntu Bam' was released in 2006, and sold close to 100,000 units.
In 2007, she won Best Newcomer and Best Adult Contemporary African album at the South African Music Awards. She also won the Best Female, Best Newcomer, and Best Produced Album accolades at the 2007 Metro FM Awards.
In 2008, the Kora Awards recognised Siphokazi’s spoken artistry and nominated her under the Best Southern African Artist group.
In celebration of Hugh Masekela’s life, South African award winning musician Maraqana Siphokazi joined Ugandan saxophonist Isaiah Katumwa and headline act Manu Dibango at a concert recently to mark the International Jazz Day.
Siphokazi, whose name means gift in IsiXhosa, is famed for her soulful sounds, poignant lyrics and sophisticated Afro-chic sound, informed by her deep-seated spirituality. This was her first time in Uganda and she spoke to The EastAfrican after the concert.
In tribute to Masekela she said: “He was our father. In the whole of Africa that man was a legend. That man knew his story, he knew his music. He was not shaken. So being here, very far away from home yet feeling like I am still at home and celebrating his life means a lot to me.”
And like Masekela, she says that her African music roots are very important to her music because she believes that we all start somewhere.
“I was born somewhere in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. And no one can take away those roots from me. I was raised in a certain way, even in Johannesburg, I am very different because of this and I am not like anybody else.”
“When I visited the United States, I discovered that I was different simply because of my background. So it is very important for me to apply that in my music because it makes me different,” she says.
She credits her Christian spirituality for the message in her music. “God directs me, so spirituality plays a vital role for me,” she says.
“Music heals, inspires and does a lot of things to our hearts, to our beings. And yet for some us it puts food on the table. It is very interesting,” she adds.
She describes her music “as fusion of a few genres; gospel, jazz, there is blues in it, there is maskandi, our mbaqanga feel in South Africa with a soulful treatment. I treat it soulfully because I bring a lot of my soul in my music. I communicate with my heart.”
The Afro-soul singer says she would have been a social worker if she was not a musician. “I love people. I care about people.” Siphokazi is an ambassador for One Love campaign that teaches young people how to use condoms or abstain from premarital sex.
She says it is because of her love for people and community that she named her debut album Ubuntu bam.
“I put my humanity in my album. I decided to focus on what I know best. I did not want to be like any other musician because as a believer as well as a spiritual person when songs were written for this album I came to an understanding that I am not just an artist, and I am was not going to be just a celebrity.”
“There is a mandate for me. God has brought me here for something. There are many people who get healed through my music. There are many people who get a certain understanding in different perspectives of life because of my music.
“So I said ‘Ubuntu bam because I am putting myself out there. To say I want to help, I want to be used by God to help the people that he (God) wants to help through me,” she adds.
“Music is very interesting because it puts together different people. I was watching news on television recently and there was a clip of people fighting.
In my mind, I thought, ‘if you can take a music band there or someone who pays the saxophone or someone who can just start a song, that fight would dissolve because I believe music is a universal language that speaks to us,” Siphokazi told The EastAfrican.
