Miriam Makeba

About

Miriam Makeba (1932-2008), also known as Mama Afrika, was a jazz and world music singer from Johannesburg, South Africa who is generally considered to be the first African artist to popularize the continent's music in the US and the world. Her most popular song, "Pata Pata," was released in 1967 and ignited a huge fascination in African music, particularly among popular musicians of the period such as Paul Simon and Harry Belafonte, who both performed with her. As a staunch activist against South African apartheid throughout most of her life, Makeba was exiled from her country for several decades before she was allowed to return home at the behest of Nelson Mandela upon his release from prison in 1990.