What is "maskanda"

n. (context South Africa English) A style of Zulu folk music, normally played solo.

Maskanda (or Maskandi) is a kind of Zulu folk music that is evolving with South African society. Ethekwini Online describes it as "The music played by the man on the move, the modern minstrel, today’s troubadour. It is the music of the man walking the long miles to court a bride, or to meet with his Chief; a means of transport. It is the music of the man who sings of his real life experiences, his daily joys and sorrows, his observations of the world. It’s the music of the man who’s got the Zulu blues."

Nowadays this is untrue in as much as it is no longer just the domain of men. African women - notably Busi Mhlongo - are also making Maskandi music. Maskandi music is largely popular and mostly consumed in the Kwa-Zulu Natal province, given its rich Zulu heritage and significance to the Zulu tribe. Looking at the genre from a record sales point of view...Maskandi happens to be the 2nd top selling genre in South Africa, after Gospel music. Although Maskandi music can be heard in more urban cities such as Johannesburg and Cape Town, it is important to note that it is largely the played by migrants who come to the big cities to seek a better quality of life and better employment opportunities. This music is typically considered backward and irrelevant by most city dwellers, given that the roots of the music are deeply entrenched in rural Kwa-Zuli Natal, and feature heavy elements of Zulu culture. Due to this, the music typically fails to connect with a wider audience and this is largely due to a lack of overall understanding of the genre, which subsequently leads to a lack of interest from listeners.

Although the genre has been in existence for many years, after the 90's there seemed to be no real interest shown in the music by youths and young musicians. Due to the large influences by western and pop culture, these days most musicians choose to learn and perform western genres of music such as Hip-Hop, RnB and Turn up and the likes and this leads to the problem of having very few young Maskandi musicians to carry the genre forward, putting the future of the genre at risk. However Maskandi bands still exist with bands such as The Bunny Chows Carrots who are youth activists for the genre, and have dedicated their music to the preservation and appreciation of Maskandi music, as well as traditional forms of music as a whole. The band advocates for youth and future generations to learn from and co-innovate with their more experienced counterparts, in order to ensure the secrets and intricate nuances of Maskandi are properly and correctly preserved for future generations.

Surprisingly, Maskandi is well received and liked by the international community because of its originality, uniqueness and mostly it's difficulty to replicate. Between the 60's and early 90's legendary Maskandi acts such as Johnston Zibokwakhe Mnyandu "Phuzekhemisi", Bhodloza Nzimande, Amatshitshi Amhlophe, Izingane Zoma, Bhekumuzi Luthuli (late) and Mfaz'Omnyama (late) contributed largely to exposing Maskandi to the international market.