She’s been hailed as the best of her generation; a music leader, trend setter, diva, and extrovert, who loved life to full.
But even in death, there is something about the late musical sensation Lebo Mathosa that keeps us coming back for more.
Maybe it’s because she dared to dream big and was strong enough to celebrate her individuality even when others cautioned against it.
When interviewed about the tragic death of Brenda Fassie in 2004, Lebo told the Mail & Guardian: “You can’t deny death, you can’t fear it. I’m sure God has a better place for us, if you’re a believer.”
There comes a time, when the people we love are no longer with us, they have moved on.
In our February edition, we pay tribute to the fascinating spirit of one of Africa’s most talented children, another one who has been taken from us long before time.
Introducing February’s Style Star, the colourful and lovable Lebo Mathosa.
To celebrate Lebo, and to remember her, gsport approached three women who dealt with her in a personal and professional space.
Neo Ntsoma is a professional photographer whose path intertwined with Lebo’s in the Joburg music scene, and captured some of the beautiful pictures we’re privileged to publish on this page, and considers Lebo in an extract from a piece she wrote for the Tonight supplement to the Independent Online media newspapers:
What do you say about a person who meant so much to you?
I first met Lebo Mathosa and Thembi Seete, the lead vocalists and dancers of Boom Shaka in 1994, they were hot dancers trying to catch the attention of talent scouts.
(Later) we met at a nightclub in Hillbrow where we were all regulars. I didn’t like them at first, because I thought they were too young to be seen at nightclubs, but also because their dance moves were very seductive.
The next time Lebo and I crossed paths was towards the end of 1998. I was an intern at The Star and Boom Shaka was already making waves in the music industry. We met in Newtown at a photo shoot to which a colleague had invited me.
The girls were looking as gorgeous as ever, and much to my surprise, Lebo recognised me. She was already an established artist, and there I was, still an intern. Even then there was something about Lebo that set her apart from the rest.
She had a presence no one could ignore. Lebo had set very high standards for herself. She was on top of her game.
I found her journey from skimpily-dressed girl seeking attention at a Hillbrow nightclub, to pop diva very inspiring.
I was humbled each time she introduced me to her circle of friends as her sister, the award-winner, telling them how much she respected me.
Lebo was a kind, loving and compassionate person, but she refused to take stick from anyone.
I will forever be grateful that Lebo shared that path with me, always encouraging me.
Linzi Cowley only knew Lebo for a short while, and tells us about managing this musical angel made before her untimely passing:
How long did you know Lebo?
She joined us at the beginning of 2006, Roddy, her actual manager, has known her since she was about 15, so that relationship goes way, way back. Since she came into our stable, we became friends very quickly, if I can call it that.
How did you find her, as a person, as a woman, particularly?
As a woman, probably one of the strongest I’ve known, probably one of the most independent that I’ve known, she was incredibly respectful of other people, of working relationships, and had a very keen eye on various people’s needs.
She wasn’t a self-centered person at all, she was just somebody who looked out for everybody else.
She got the nickname ‘Moms’, just because she was everyone’s mom (laughs), she loved looking after people. If she had anything, she’d give it!
Incredibly warm-hearted, open, amazing, amazing person. Work-wise, personally-wise, everything, she was amazing.
When you take someone of such musical talent, merged with the personality type that you’ve described, you’ve got someone quite outstanding, someone who you don’t encounter too often:
Absolutely not, I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, in all the years that I’ve hoped to working in a career like this, I only dreamed of having the privilege of working with someone like Lebo, and even though it was such a short time that we did work together, I will cherish that for ever and ever, it was just such an honour to have worked with her.
Lebo went overseas for the Music of Black Origin (MOBO) Awards last year, can you tell us what happened, and what was the response to her music?
The Africa Unite Music Group (AUMG) which sponsored the event, were out there to promote African artists, I think that’s where the whole concept came from, so we do have them to thank for creating that platform for us. Lebo was so excited about being nominated.
She went over the year before just as a guest, but to be nominated, she was just absolutely elated, she went mad (laughs)!
So yeah, we went over in September, with a couple of her dancers… There was a small performance that AUMG put on outside of the event itself, it was really just to highlight the artists that were nominated in that category, and she performed with some of the other African artists.
But the highlight itself was being at the actual awards, being recognised with artists of such massive international standards, it was a big deal for her, she really felt very special.
Well, obviously her roots were here, she never forgot for a second where she came from… but at the same time, she has such big dreams and such big hopes…
But even if she did (reach her potential), as we were completely confident she would have, she would have created a big stir on the international market, very, very soon, like within a year, she would have taken that with her.
She was always going to be one of those people, really strong about who she is, where she’s come from, and probably would have used all of that to show the rest of the world what it’s all about.
She was all about what African was all about, she was so proud of that…
Phindile Mkhabela, Lebo’s friend and colleague of many years shares her insights into this musical prodigy after her years of association with Lebo:
What was your relationship to Lebo Mathosa?
I always find that the hardest question to answer, uhm, well, I was her manager, but I was a friend, she introduced me as a sister, it was a combination of things, so it’s more, I think let’s say, a friend and a colleague.
How long did you work with her?
Well, I met her when she was still with Boom Shaka, and I did her first launch, when she went solo, yeah, so, I’ve been with her for a very long time.
When she went solo, she approached me, and asked me to do the production for the ‘Dream’ album, and that’s when I started to work with her.
You were really close with her, personally and professionally, I suppose you really come to meet the person. Tell us about the first time you met her:
I knew them as Boom Shaka, and I was very young then, I was working as a production assistant on a talk-show called Night Moves, the Dali Tambo show.
I was working as a production assistant, and then they were interviewing like Mandela, all the people who were coming back into South Africa.
And I insisted, there’s this new kid on the block, they’re called Boom Shaka, they have this crazy dance, you must interview them, so I got Dali to interview them on Night Moves, and that’s when we met professionally.
And then, before that, we met as friends on the dance floor, I was a student at Wits Tech, at a party, yeah, we met on the dance floor, literally… Lebo was dancing, and people were staring, like, girls what’s wrong.
So I decided to join her, you know, and she was dancing in a manner, ‘Someone join me, don’t just stare at me!’ So I went in (laughs). It was like, ‘Hi’; ‘Hi’; ‘Hi I’m Lebo’; ‘Hi, I’m Phindi!’, you know (laughs).
That’s probably the best way to meet somebody, you can’t hide much on the dance floor, if you’re really all-in (laughs):
She had this expression, not ‘Come on, watch me’, no, it was ‘Come on, let’s dance!’ So, yeah, that’s how we met.
Her dream! Her understanding of what she possessed. She knew, not in an egotistical manner, but she dreamed of things. She knew her talent; she knew herself, within, that ‘I want to go…’
Even then, Lebo looked at Janet Jackson as, ‘That’s where I’m going to be, as big as or bigger than them.’ And that’s who she positioned herself with, you know.
Janet and Madonna were her artistic (inspiration). How they did their show, everything about them. Their lifestyles, their freedom are their lives. What they created of their lifestyle. Those are the people that inspired her, that’s what she was aiming for.
And also, when she was brave enough to go solo, when people were not doing the solo thing, it was groups. She kicked the boundary, when she went solo; it was a very brave thing to do. She was ahead of her time.
What was her biggest gift to all of us?
You know with Lebo, it’s her love of self. When you size a thing, the accent is on love. There’s various loves, you know. The most basic love, and the one she spoke about, and represented, is love of self.
It goes through her songs. You know, Lebo used to wear a necklace, she had a necklace called ‘Love’, and Lebo used to lose things, but that’s the one necklace she never lost.
That’s the one thing she always had on. If she wasn’t wearing her Rosary, because she used to mix like three Rosaries, she always had her necklace on, called ‘Love’, and she never lost that.
The February edition’s focus is ‘Love’: Please tell us how Lebo’s fans related to her?
On that Love issue, in the sense of her music when she was with Boom Shaka, one of the best songs Lebo ever wrote, is a song called ‘Lerato’. Lerato is Love.
Translated, it means: ‘You have to love yourself within you, then they will all love you. This is where it begins, love comes from within.
If you explore that love within, then they will all come to love you. Don’t look for love outside; if you love yourself, then the world will love you in return.’
That song, Lerato, it is one of her best songs, it’s one of the biggest tracks of Boom Shaka, she wrote it! It comes from within you. If you have that, they will love you, so don’t stress about it, you know, it comes from deep, deep within.
Please relate any incident which you recall, that showed how much Lebo loved this country, and what her aspirations for South Africa were?
Where do I begin? When I worked with her, we travelled a lot. Before interviews, we’d sit and construct, because the media always knows what it wants to bring out of you, but it was also, what do we want to say, what do we want to come out, you know…
And, when we were in Gabon, when we were in Nigeria, in Kenya, it was love of being South African, but also, love of all living on the same continent… Love each other, let’s build each other.
She always tried to connect with people… I’ve watched a lot of celebrities, but with Lebo, people wanted to touch her, to have a physical connection with her, and the thing is she allowed it.
If she’s in an interview or she’s doing something, and you’re trying to get her attention, and a child comes to her: Forget it! It doesn’t matter whether she’s shooting a music video, whether she has to meet Thabo Mbeki, she’ll stop!
And love of our country, when Lebo spoke to an adult, like in the industry, especially when it comes to your black guys, she called everyone, like, ‘Brother’ so-and-so, ‘Sister’ so-and-so. She never spoke to people who were her elders, even by two years or three, by their names.
Even in the recording company, the make-up artists, she acknowledged ‘You are older than me, I give you that.’ And that is respecting the person that you are, and the culture that you live in.
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