Some of you may occasionally have wondered about the identity the handsome gentleman at the top right of the page. Some of you may have not. I'm going to tell you anyway. Its Penny Penny.
When I started this blog way back in 2009 I had a mission to bring Tsonga Disco music to the masses. Tsonga Disco was a contemporary take on the traditional music of the Tsonga or Shangaan people who can be found mostly in the Limpopo Province in the north east of South Africa and in southern Mozambique.
Between the mid 1990s and mid 2000s Penny Penny (Papa Penny to his many fans) was the undisputed king of Tsonga Disco but by the time I started featuring his music here he had largely given up on recording and was spending most of his time in local politics, helping to improve living conditions and infrastructure in his home town of Giyani.
In the mid 2010s my old pal Mr. Awesome Tapes From Africa reissued a couple of his albums from the 1990s to moderate acclaim. This seemed to prompt Papa Penny to revive his showbiz career. He turned up as a celebrity judge on a TV talent show, launched his own reality series and in 2019 started releasing new albums after a gap of ten years. His most recent album is "Sesi Va Rosie" which came out in 2023 and we have a couple of selections for you.
He hasn't given up the politics though. Quite the opposite. Last year he became an MP representing the main opposition party in the national parliament. His performance as a politician has not received the same universal praise given to his musical performances. But I say no to the naysayers and all power to Papa Polymath!
"Sesi Va Rosie" - Penny Penny
"Xirilo" - Penny Penny
We finish off with a couple of videos featuring Papa Penny's hit "Milandu Bhe" - first the original from 1994 and then a remake from a couple of years ago with current pop sensation and follow Tsonga star Makhadzi. Her brand new album is the similarly titled "Sesi Ka Rose". Coincidence? I think not.
No comments:
Post a Comment