The early resistance

Resistance to apartheid took many forms, from non-violent protests to armed struggle. Music emerged as a unifying force that showed resilience, and socio-political resistance and finally led to transformation.

Songs such as Enoch Sontonga's "Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika" (God Bless Africa), the anthem of the African National Congress (ANC), symbolised hope and defiance.

Early protest songs criticised land dispossession and laid the foundation for a musical tradition of resistance. Today, songs still play a significant role in South African political cultures and are sung at the start and end of political meetings, as well as during demonstrations and protests.

The 1950s: music as a weapon of protest

In the 1950s, as apartheid laws tightened, musicians began to use their art to explicitly oppose the regime.

The protest music of the 1950s, soon after apartheid had begun, explicitly addressed peoples' grievances over pass laws and forced relocation and became an integral part of integrating the anti-apartheid message into everyday society.

Vuyisile Mini, an ANC activist and trade unionist, composed "Ndodemnyama we Verwoerd" (Watch out, Verwoerd), a powerful Xhosa song warning the apartheid architect Hendrik Verwoerd of the people’s resistance.

Mini was among the pioneers of using music to protest apartheid.

Mini’s song became an enduring anthem, which he is said to have sung as he was taken to the gallows to face execution in 1964 after being arrested in 1963 for "political crimes", and sentenced to death.

Women also played a crucial role in the musical resistance.

Dorothy Masuka’s "uDr. Malan Unomthetho Onzima" (Dr. Malan’s government is harsh) criticised the regime’s oppressive policies, while songs such as "Meadowlands" by Strike Vilakezi mourned the forced relocation of communities from Sophiatown, a vibrant hub of African jazz and culture.

The song, and others on Sophiatown, illustrated the heartache residents felt, being forcefully removed from their homes,

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The sound of freedom: how music became a powerful weapon in South Africa's fight against apartheid