Brenda Fassie

About

Brenda Fassie was a South African pop singer known for her elaborate style and bold voice. She became a voice for the marginalized black community during the apartheid, earning the title of the Queen of African Pop and Mabrr, among her fans. Fassie was born in Langa, Cape Town where her mother, a pianist, tuaght her how to sing. She moved to Soweto, Johannesburg when she was 16 to pursue a career in music and joined the group Joy before becoming the lead singer for the pop group Brenda and The Big Dudes. He first album Brenda, was released in 1989, and soon gained a fan base with an outrageous and outspoken reputation. She often sang and spoke out against poverty and poor living conditions in poorer townships in Johannesburg, gaining such widespread popularity throughout the area that she was named "The Madonna of Townships" in 2001 by Time. Despite several attempts at rehabilitation, Fassie never fully recovered from her addiction to cocaine and passed away in 2004.