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On the first disc of his double CD, Street's Disciple, Nas defames Kobe Bryant's character, but later advises the youth to emulate revolutionary South African singer Miriam Makeba. With the record earning a gold plaque, Nas sheds light on a woman that inspired the Afro look and denounced the conditions of South Africa's apartheid.
On "These Are Our Heroes," Nas idolizes Black role models when he name drops, "Tavis Smiley, Michael Eric Dyson/ Stokely Carmichael, let's try to be like them/ Nicky Giovanni, poetical black female/ Jim Brown to the people who sing well/ From Fela to Miriam Makeba/ The mirror says you are the next American leader."
The line refers to one of Black history's lesser-known figures. Born in South Africa in 1932, Miriam Makeba's career took off at a young age. By 1954, at only 22-years-young, Makeba first got noticed as a guest vocalist with the Manhattan Brothers. She then went on to record with her own outfit, the all-woman group, The Skylarks and toured Southern Africa for 18 months on Alf Herbert's African Jazz and Variety.
Having reached much notoriety in South Africa, Makeba set her sights on the U.S. In 1959, she landed the female lead role in the Broadway-inspired South African musical King Kong. That same year, Makeba became the first South African to win a Grammy Award for her collaborative work with Harry Belafonte, An Evening with Harry Belafonte & Miriam Makeba, which included classics like "Pata Pata" and "The Click Song." The following year, she appeared in an anti-apartheid documentary dubbed Come Back Africa. The South African government consequently revoked her citizenship and right to return because they considered Makeba too "dangerous and revolutionary."
She continued living in the U.S. and later married Black Panther leader Stokely Carmichael in 1968. The union angered the U.S. and her concerts and recording contracts were abruptly terminated. Tired of being harassed by the U.S. authorities, Makeba left to exile in Guinea. Still, her exile didn't prevent her artistic profile from rising as she kept performing and hitting stages with legends like Nina Simone, Dizzy Gillespie and Paul Simon. While in Guinea, she continued to hold a firm stance against the apartheid and addressed the United Nations' General Assembly twice regarding the South African matter. She also served as Goodwill Ambassador to the United Nations for President Thabo Mbeki.
Though she never considered herself a political figure, Makeba received several international awards thanks to her humanitarian work including 1986's Dag Hammarskjold Peace Prize, the UNESCO Grand Prix du Conseil International de la Musique and Gold Class Commandeur de la Légion d'honneur from French President, Jacques Chirac. Makeba is also credited for sparking the natural Afro look trend in the 1960s when the "Black Is Beautiful" slogan launched. Makeba also performed for some of the World's most powerful leaders, including a performance for former U.S. president John F. Kennedy's birthday with Marilyn Monroe, former French president Francois Mitterrand, Cuban dictator Fidel Castro and former Ethiopia emperor Hailé Selassie.
After over two decades, the ban on her records in South Africa was removed in 1988 and she returned to her native country two years later. In addition to political persecution, Makeba has also overcome several car accidents, a plane crash and cancer. She has released 30 albums in four decades and her latest album, 2000's Homeland was nominated for a Grammy in 2001. She presently remains active as founder and co-owner of The Makeba Rehabilitation Center For Girls located in Midrand, South Africa.
Source: sohh.com
On "These Are Our Heroes," Nas idolizes Black role models when he name drops, "Tavis Smiley, Michael Eric Dyson/ Stokely Carmichael, let's try to be like them/ Nicky Giovanni, poetical black female/ Jim Brown to the people who sing well/ From Fela to Miriam Makeba/ The mirror says you are the next American leader."
The line refers to one of Black history's lesser-known figures. Born in South Africa in 1932, Miriam Makeba's career took off at a young age. By 1954, at only 22-years-young, Makeba first got noticed as a guest vocalist with the Manhattan Brothers. She then went on to record with her own outfit, the all-woman group, The Skylarks and toured Southern Africa for 18 months on Alf Herbert's African Jazz and Variety.
Having reached much notoriety in South Africa, Makeba set her sights on the U.S. In 1959, she landed the female lead role in the Broadway-inspired South African musical King Kong. That same year, Makeba became the first South African to win a Grammy Award for her collaborative work with Harry Belafonte, An Evening with Harry Belafonte & Miriam Makeba, which included classics like "Pata Pata" and "The Click Song." The following year, she appeared in an anti-apartheid documentary dubbed Come Back Africa. The South African government consequently revoked her citizenship and right to return because they considered Makeba too "dangerous and revolutionary."
She continued living in the U.S. and later married Black Panther leader Stokely Carmichael in 1968. The union angered the U.S. and her concerts and recording contracts were abruptly terminated. Tired of being harassed by the U.S. authorities, Makeba left to exile in Guinea. Still, her exile didn't prevent her artistic profile from rising as she kept performing and hitting stages with legends like Nina Simone, Dizzy Gillespie and Paul Simon. While in Guinea, she continued to hold a firm stance against the apartheid and addressed the United Nations' General Assembly twice regarding the South African matter. She also served as Goodwill Ambassador to the United Nations for President Thabo Mbeki.
Though she never considered herself a political figure, Makeba received several international awards thanks to her humanitarian work including 1986's Dag Hammarskjold Peace Prize, the UNESCO Grand Prix du Conseil International de la Musique and Gold Class Commandeur de la Légion d'honneur from French President, Jacques Chirac. Makeba is also credited for sparking the natural Afro look trend in the 1960s when the "Black Is Beautiful" slogan launched. Makeba also performed for some of the World's most powerful leaders, including a performance for former U.S. president John F. Kennedy's birthday with Marilyn Monroe, former French president Francois Mitterrand, Cuban dictator Fidel Castro and former Ethiopia emperor Hailé Selassie.
After over two decades, the ban on her records in South Africa was removed in 1988 and she returned to her native country two years later. In addition to political persecution, Makeba has also overcome several car accidents, a plane crash and cancer. She has released 30 albums in four decades and her latest album, 2000's Homeland was nominated for a Grammy in 2001. She presently remains active as founder and co-owner of The Makeba Rehabilitation Center For Girls located in Midrand, South Africa.
Source: sohh.com