SAMA 23 Lifetime Achievers revealed

The SAMA23 Lifetime Achievement honourees represent a potpourri of sounds that influenced generations. They are innovators and creative geniuses who for decades blazed the trail in different genres.

We are proud to announce that Rebecca Malope, the Queen of Gospel, will be presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award this year. She is a multiple SAMA winner and a music force to be reckoned with in South Africa. Her powerful voice has taken her all over the African continent, the US and Europe filling up venues wherever she performed.

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Don Laka is also in line to take home a Lifetime Achievement gong. The pioneer of kwaai-jazz who started off in the trenches of jazz and dabbled with the influences of kwaito is a revered pianist and a record label co-owner. He is also a SAMA winner and a respected figure in the local music industry. Bra Don, as he is known, defined a sound for generations and helped produce stars through his work.

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A voice that defined black music of the 1970s and 1980s, Babsy Mlangeni will be honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award. Mlangeni never let his condition as a blind musician to condemn him. His entertaining songs with compelling messages propelled his name into the stratosphere of fame.

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Remarked RiSA CEO Nhlanhla Sibisi: “We as the SAMA organisers value these honours highly. We believe that our veteran who served the industry with unmatched dedication and gave us timeless music should never be forgotten by history, as such we look forward to etching the names of Rebecca Malope, Don Laka and Babsy Mlangeni in our presitigious list of lifetime achievers. We say well done on such colourful careers and let this be a token of our appreciation of your talent as a nation.”