South African religious beliefs, prayers, and praises are expressed through music. So are important life transitions and rites of passage, such as death, marriage, and coming of age. The music is characterized in many cultures by the inclusion of the spoken word, dance, and poetry.

Africans of different countries and races have provided music with a common function over time in expressing the struggle with foreign domination. This carries over in the music of populations of Africans that have been enslaved at one time or another. One example of a music genre that has evolved through this struggle is Reggae, which is a result of Africans being brought to Jamaica and combining their native music with the native instruments and customs there. Other music styles which owe their development in part to African musicians are jazz, rhythm and blues, hip hop, and rap.

The blending of traditional African music with those from other cultures is also evident by looking at the various terms that might be defined in an encyclopedia of African music. Terms include everything from Iscathamiya, which is a traditional Zulu call-and-response a capella style, to Rai, youthful pop music from Algeria that commonly has love and drinking themes. For a more extensive list of terms, go to africanmusic.org

Following is a list of African and African-influenced musical artists. To find out more about them, click on the links provided. All quotes on this page are taken directly from the link pages listed.

Kwashi was born in the village of Dzodze, located in Southern Ghana, the son of a respected drummer and a dancer. He came to Los Angeles in the 1980’s, where he taught music and opened his own percussion store. He has continued to compose and perform, even starring in several American movies.

Fela Anikulapo Kuti, born in Abeokuta, Nigeria in 1938, was a singer-composer, trumpet, sax and keyboard player, bandleader, and politician.” Kuti was a very controversial musician in Africa throughout his life. He played in the “highlife” musical genre, putting his own take on the style and dubbing it “highlife jazz.” He also had great influence on the “Afro-beat.”

Kaikpai is a drummer, dancer, choreographer, and storyteller of the Vai ethnic group…. Kaikpai and his dancing partner, Cleo, are truly ambassadors of Liberian culture, a couple that believes in their tradition. Mastering not only dances and rhythms of the Vai and Bassa but also the various ethnic groups of Liberia as well as Guinea, Sierre Leone and Cote 'dIvoire. They both are well known talented professional artists of their homeland and well respected in drum and dance community here the United States.

Boukan Ginen came together as a group in 1990. Proud of their Haitian heritage, they are winners of best carnival song at Haitian Carnival in 1991, for the song Pale Pale W.

Stella Rambisai Chiweshe is one of the few women playing the male-dominated mbira-based music of the Shona people. Born in the late 1940s, Chiweshe grew up in Zimbabwe's forest region of Mhondoro, about 45 miles from the capital city, Harare. Chiweshe persevered to become perhaps the best known player of the [mbira] instrument outside Zimbabwe. In early 1998 she appeared as one of three women showcased on the Global Divas tour (the other two acts being Susana Baca and Tish Hinojosa), which toured all over the U.S

I. K. Dairo is often called The Father of Juju Music. In the 1950s and 1960's Juju was considered music of the 'poorer' people because it wasn't modern enough for the elite of the class-conscious Nigeria. After independence, I.K. Dairo was the chief reason Juju took off.

Lucky Dube is a reggae artist who was inspired by stars such as Bob Marley and Jimmy Cliff.

Cesaria Evora, born in 1941 in the port town of Mindelo on the Cape Verde island of Sao Vicente, is known as the barefoot diva because of her propensity to appear on stage in her bare feet in support of the disadvantaged women and children of her country. Long known as the queen of the morna, a soulful genre sung in Creole-Portuguese, she mixes her sentimental folk tunes filled with longing and sadness with the acoustic sounds of guitar, cavaquinho, violin, accordian, and clarinet. Evora's Cape Verdean blues often speak of the country's long and bitter history of isolation and slave trade, as well as emigration

For more general information on South African music, visit the links below:

A wonderful history of African music in social context, with sections on instruments and popularization.

An extensive source of information. Includes a glossary of terms and a list of musicians.

A list of African musicians, some with pictures, histories, and discographies, organized by musical style.

A vibrant site with news articles, forums, and research links on African hip hop.

Another history of African music, with focuses on religious and cultural influences.

A purely musical website, where you can see tour dates of various musicians and groups, purchase albums, and even listen to sound clips!