Margaret Singana

Margaret Singana, known throughout Southern Africa as “Lady Africa”, was one of the most distinctive voices of South African popular music. Born Margaret M’cingana in Queenstown in the Eastern Cape in 1938, she moved to Johannesburg in the 1950s in search of a career as a singer. She initially worked as a domestic worker, but her employers recognised her extraordinary voice and helped introduce her to the recording industry.

Her breakthrough came through theatre. After appearing in productions including Alan Paton’s Sponono, Singana became involved with the musical Ipi Ntombi, where she took the lead vocal role. Its song, Mama Tembu’s Wedding, became one of her signature recordings, while the production itself travelled internationally, including performances in Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Singana also established herself as a major recording artist. In 1972 she recorded Good Feelings with the group The Symbols, and the song reached number two on the LM Hit Parade. She subsequently became the first black artist to appear on the Radio 5 hit parade. Her recordings included Hamba Bhekile, I Never Loved a Man the Way I Loved You, Why Did You Do It? and Tribal Fence, with much of her work preserved in the Gallo archive.

Her career was interrupted by serious ill health, but she returned to the public spotlight with We Are Growing, the theme from the television series Shaka Zulu. The song became a major international success, reaching number one in the Netherlands in 1989.

Margaret Singana died in April 2000. Her remarkable career left behind a body of recordings that continues to represent an important chapter in South African music history. Gallo’s archive and subsequent releases have helped ensure that the voice of ‘Lady Africa’ remains part of the country’s musical heritage.