Bongeziwe Mabandla
Fans of Fatoumata Diawara and Samba Touré take note: meet Bongeziwe Mabandla, the enigmatic spirit of African Soul. He is a multi-award-winning artist who has recorded four critically acclaimed albums. Bongeziwe Mabandla's music is characterized as folk-driven, with lyrics in his local dialect, isiXhosa. He has performed at various sold-out national and international venues and has expanded his talents to film and visual arts.
As part of the Black Alternative sound, which is one of the most exciting music genres around right now, Mabandla first caught the attention of music lovers with his debut album Umlilo in 2012. In collaboration with composer, instrumentalist, and producer Tiago Correia-Paulo, he has since released three albums—Mangaliso (2017), iimini (2020), and his latest, amaXesha (2023)—which have brought the singer, songwriter, and musician from rural Tsolo in the Eastern Cape to the international stage.
Mabandla also makes an impression outside the music world. In 2022, he made his film debut in Augure, a film by Belgian-Congolese artist Baloji that won the New Voices Award in the “Un Certain Regard” category at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival.
In April, Bongeziwe Mabandla will be performing live at Simplon. A unique opportunity to experience this enchanting voice of African Soul up close!
