Amatshitshi Amhlophe

Few groups in South African music have endured as much hardship and emerged still standing as Amatshitshi Amhlophe. Formed in 1993 in KwaZulu-Natal under the guidance of maskandi legend Mahawukela Mseleku, and with their debut album Isono produced by top maskandi producer Thembinkosi Nganeziyamfisa, the all-female group arrived on the scene with an energy and authenticity that captured the maskandi world immediately. The name, roughly translated as the white girls, belied the toughness and resilience that would come to define their story.

Their debut Isono broke them onto the music scene instantly and established them as top sellers in the maskandi genre. The albums that followed, Uxolo, Isisho Sabadala, Amanuoko Sibal, Wangi Thinta Thinta, Wenhlal' Igoma, Igaz'elimbi and Inqola, documented a group at the height of their powers, their energetic dance routines and colourful costumes making them a firm festival favourite. Their biggest hits, Ngesab' Igazi Lomuntu and Nithi Kangimbulale, became anthems that audiences would demand even when the group was not on the bill. They toured alongside Lucky Dube, Soul Brothers, the late Brenda Fassie and Jabu Khanyile, cementing their place at the very top of the traditional music world.

Then tragedy began to take its toll. Between 1998 and 2003 the group lost multiple members, and in 2000 their founder Mahawukela Mseleku passed away. The group pressed on with rotating and new members until eventually taking a break and releasing a Best Of compilation on Gallo Record Company in 2005.

In 2007, sole remaining original member Winile Sibiya rebuilt the group from scratch, releasing through Bula Music. The comeback proved lasting. By 2022, now alongside Mabusi Mtshali, both women from Nquthu in KwaZulu-Natal, the group released their eighteenth album Ngangingahlanyi, proof that Amatshitshi Amhlophe simply refuse to be silenced.