Discovered by Robyn Orlin, who created with them Walking next to our shoes, the South African Phuphuma Love Minus proudly bears the tradition of the isicathamiya, the singing that takes its cues from Christian gospel and American minstrel shows. Paul Simon gave this global recognition with Graceland in 1986. Stemming from Zulu culture, the isicathamiya was secretly born in the townships of Johannesburg. Workers from the country had to deny their identity and become invisible, whispering their song and dance in fear although they once defied lions and colonists. Eleven men in a cappella ignite the audience with a show overflowing with the joy of life. Equipped with an inexorable humour and impeccably dressed, they illuminate in a swing and jazzy spirit all the cultural refinement of a forgotten people. A festive ritual where the sadness of the oppressed and the sovereign wind of rebellion soar.
