SA: Listen to fourth episode of Gallo Vault Sessions‘ podcast

Episode four of the six-part series documents how Johannesburg became an important music hub and epicentre of the South African recording industry. The story depicts how label executives were a buffer zone between labels that profited from black-recorded music and the black musicians who bore the brunt of a financially exploitative industry.  

The podcast narrates the legacies of mega producers such as Griffiths Motsieloa, Cuthbert Matumba, David Thekwane and Rupert Bopape who collectively unearthed big names at the time like Dorothy Masuka, maskandi pioneer Phuzushukela and Mahlathini, among many more. 

Some artists featured include legendary penny whistler and organ jive player Lulu Masilela from The Boyoyo Boys, who composed a number of hits but did not receive songwriting credits. Other musicians include Sipho ‘Hotstix’ Mabuse, Mike Swaratle as well as Gallo archivist Rob Allingham. The Mahotella Queens soprano Hilda Tloubatla also appears in the documentary. Like many black artists in that era, she shares her story of how she was sent off to boarding school by her parents, but took a different train to Joburg and landed on Gallo’s doorstep wanting to sing. 

Many hopeful musicians at the time loitered the streets of Gallo, EMI and other recording studios hoping to land a recording deal. However, most of the artists didn’t sign any contracts and were instead only paid fees for each session by the producer.  The producers also played a pivotal role as marketers, testing the appeal of their new recordings in their mobile vans by playing them outside train stations as commuters arrived for work. 

The episode also features a specially curated mix by Naledi Chai from Fly Machine Sessions, which explores the sounds from the producers.

Episodes one to four are available on select digital streaming platforms with those launched on the last Thursday of the month until August.

The series is narrated by Kineta Kunutu. It was researched, produced and written by pan-African creative research and cultural storytelling agency Konjo founder DJ Zara Julius. Gallo Record Company is South Africa’s largest and oldest independent music label since its inception in 1926.