Alex musician and prolific dancer Mathabatha Jobo had a lucky escape with his life after he was shot and injured in a hijacking in the township.
An incident that almost left him paralysed and which Jobo would prefer to forget, saying ‘let sleeping dogs lie’, happened to him in the middle of this year when hijackers targeted him for what he believed was an anti-gay sentiment.
Jobo said he was shot twice in the arm and spent a couple of weeks in hospital but survived through the grace of the Almighty and his ancestors whom he believed protected him from the ‘cruel hijackers’ who wanted to take his life.
“I believe I was targeted by these cruel hijackers for the sole reason that I am a gay man and musician. I have decided to forget all that so I can forge ahead with my music career. I am back with a bang and have some gigs lined up if the dreaded Covid-19 does not close us down again,” added Jobo, an Alex born and raised musician who has worked for many years with the likes of Somizi Mhlongo, Iko Mash and others.
Jobo said he had released his debut album Ngasho after saving money to fund its production. This taught him a lesson about perseverance, courage, discipline and determination.
That album kept people on the dance floor and he had performed in various events and venues including The Heritage Corner, Bafanas Bikers launch, Hendrina in KwaNdebele, Club Neh in Alexandra, Cool Runnings, Themba’s Car Wash, just to mention a few.
He has shared the stage with Lira at Joburg Pride, Stoan, Speedy, his late Kasi mate Flabba and Oskido at Alex Beer fest, and Thembisile and Buggy at the Feathers awards.
This year, Jobo said he started working on his follow-up album and called on his long-time friend and collaborator Malamesh, who is a songwriter, rapper, actor and scriptwriter,, to work with him.
They involved Moses ‘Big Mo’ Sibeko who is a producer, engineer, composer, singer and talent manager to produce the album. Within three weeks, they came up with the single Chibirika which is a combination of Afro-pop and amapiano. “It is one of those songs that will be put on repeat for years to come,” Jobo said.
His message to young people that want to take up music as a career was to urge them to ‘believe in you dreams, and they’ll definitely come true one day’.
Details: Mathabatha Jobo 073 443 6631; 083 682 1121; sbktalent@gmail.com
