Mmegi

Swabi reflects on a 40-year musical legacy

Swabi reflects on a 40-year musical legacy
Swabi reflects on a 40-year musical legacy

In the early 1960s, George Swabi had little more than his voice and a homemade Setinkane. But an impromptu visit to Radio Botswana a decade later would change his life forever. This week, SHARON MATHALA visited the legendary musician at his Palapye home, where the Serowe-born artist reflected on a career that possibly helped shape Botswana’s traditional music landscape

Though old age has crept in, Swabi’s frail appearance is deceptive as his energy remains strikingly youthful; his storytelling is animated by decades of lived experience. When asked whether he is ready to hang up the microphone, he pauses briefly and answers.

“Very soon, actually. I don’t think that by next year, I will still be able to perform. The years have passed, but music is the only thing I know, you know,” he said.

Editor's Comment
Public servants deserve better than union infighting

‘The strongest bond of human sympathy outside the family relation should be one uniting working people of all nations and tongues and kindreds’.- Abraham LincolnUntil then, the Council’s operations remain suspended, delaying critical decisions affecting thousands of public sector employees.The current standoff is between the Manual Workers Union on one side and the Six Cooperating Trade Unions, namely BONU, BOPEU, BTU, BDU, BOSETU and...

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