SA Music Awards announce 2018 achievers

Organised by the Recording Industry of South Africa (RiSA), the SAMAs will also honour South African artist Shashika Mooruth with an International Achiever Award.

"We salute this year's recipients of the Lifetime Achievement Award," RiSA CEO Nhlanhla Sibisi said. "Their sterling careers will not go unnoticed and these accolades are reminders of how they contributed to the music industry. Congratulations to Spokes H posthumously, Steve Kekana and Mbongeni Ngema.

“You did us proud. In the same breath, the SAMA sees the achievements on the international scale of Shashika Mooruth befitting of the International Achiever Award. South African music is in good stead with talents of her magnitude and we say well done to the daughter of the soil," he said.

North West department of culture, arts and traditional affairs MEC Ontlametse Mochware said: “These individuals have earned their stripes in the entertainment industry with their enormous influence not only to their peers but also to the broader community as well.

“To us, they represent the true spirits of Nelson Mandela and Albertina Sisulu, whose centenaries we celebrate this year. In that spirit, may their influence in the industry continue for many years to come for the benefit of our artists, particularly the youth."

Spokes H, who died aged 45 in 2013, will be honoured posthumously. Born Letona Spokes Hlatshwayo, the singer gained fame in the 1980s with hit songs such as ‘Tamatisous’, ‘Rabaki’ and ‘Peace Magents.’ 

The 59-year-old Kekana has made vast contributions to the South African music industry. The ‘Feel So Strong’ singer did not let blindness deter him from pursuing his dream of becoming a singer. He discovered his talent during his teens and in 1979 and 1980 he won the SABC Black Music Award for Best Male Vocalist. He is also an advocate and lecturer in labour law at the University of South Africa.

Writer, lyricist, composer, director and theatre producer Mbongeni Ngema is credited for composing the soundtracks to some of the most iconic South African theatre productions such as Sarafina!, Woza Albert, Asinamali and Magic at 4am. His greatest hit, ‘Stimela Sase Zola’, spearheaded his career and earned him a household name.

Indian musician Mooruth put the local industry in the spotlight with the release of Krishna, the Flute Player, which featured on the Billboard charts after the album's release in 2016. Her single ‘It’s Sa Ga Sa Ga Ma’ was this year nominated in the Best World Music Song category at the Roundglass Music Awards in the US. Her music has been included in the music appreciation and world music classes at Emerson College in Boston.