Language, Music, Self-Representation and Claiming the Space: Artists from Limpopo Province in South Africa

Abstract

It is widely accepted that popular culture is a product of the masses, for the masses. But even then, popular culture is embedded with ideologies of control, manipulation, power dynamics, exclusion and inclusion, empowerment, and disempowerment. For a long time, the South African mainstream music industry has been dominated by artists and groups from Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal provinces. These two provinces have produced many musical artists, film productions, television shows and many other artistic personnel. Language has always been a key factor in the South African mainstream music industry. IsiZulu, isiXhosa and instances of codeswitching have dominated the songs in the country. This has left other social groups and their languages outside mainstream music. However, what happens when a culture of self-representation emerges among a social group? What happens when a social group mobilises itself and claims the space? What about the power of languages in achieving self-representation? This study is influenced by these research questions to do qualitative, textual research on how a selected group of musical artists from Limpopo, South Africa is using music to achieve self-representation.