Ben ‘Gwigwi’ Mrwebi was born in Johannesburg in 1936 and was a saxophonist and clarinetist in the musical groups The Jazz Maniacs, The Jazz Dazzlers and The Harlem Swingsters in the 50s.
In 1960, Mrwebi toured as a part of the musical King Kong from Johannesburg to London and was the narrator and clarinetist in this stage production. Due to apartheid, he remained in London in 1961 after the show had ended.
The fiery saxophonist achieved international acclaim after he appeared on numerous radio shows for the BBC World Service Africa in the late 60s.
In 1967, he took the album Kwela, which was named after the South African music style, to the American music industry. He later partnered up with musicians including Chris McGregor, Dudu Pukwana, Ronnie Beer, Coleridge Goode and Laurie Allan on a number of different projects. The highly collaborative Kwela album was re-released in 2006 and was called Mbaqanga.
Before his death, he enrolled at Berklee College of Music in Boston, USA.
The influential musician died in the 70s leaving a great legacy behind him and it is for this reason that the popular street was named after him.
Originally called Pim Street, the pathways he paved to introduce South African music to the rest of the world made him a person whose tale needed to be told, and the street name was then changed in 2014.
Details: www.joburg.org.za
