SIPHOSETHU NGCANGISA
Legends Creative Hub has secured a Buffalo City Metro (BCM) tender to record singles for 12 local artists — including a 71-year-old musician who will be stepping into a professional recording studio for the first time.
Among the selected artists is Maqula, who grew up in the village of Tsolo, where his love for music began with a homemade guitar crafted from cardboard and elastic bands.
“I taught myself to play,” he said.
“An elderly villager later made me a stronger one using a water drum, and that was a turning point for me.
“From there I started playing on a proper guitar.”
In 1974, Maqula relocated to Dukashe, where his music career began to take shape.
He joined local jazz bands and toured across provinces, sharing stages with respected names including Tete Mbambisa, the Prestige Band, Urban Connection and Mzwandile Mbetsheni.
He also met jazz legend Jimmy Dludlu in Namibia and later performed alongside him at a Cape Town club.
“I asked him to buy me a new bass guitar, and he offered me his instead, and since then, it has never left my sight,” Maqula said.
Despite decades of performing, he has never recorded professionally, until now.
Through the Legends Creative Hub project, three of his Afro-jazz fusion tracks are being recorded — a breakthrough he describes as long overdue.
“This project has given me an opportunity I never had before,” he said.
The recording programme is being funded through a R299,120 BCM tender, awarded in late 2025.
BCM senior manager for destination marketing and information services, Thandiswa George, said the initiative went beyond studio time.
“It includes recording studio bookings, mastering, a photo shoot and a music video shoot,” she said.
George said the tender process required a fully equipped studio, a qualified team, proof of address and a portfolio of previous work.
“Every financial year, budgets are set aside to assist artists who need financial support,” she said.
Legends Showcase’s Naledi Mtengwane said 11 musicians and one filmmaker were selected for the programme.
“They are getting a special recording opportunity, a photo shoot and a music video, which will be shot after the recording sessions. We are also designing sleeve covers for their singles on digital platforms,” she said.
Each artist will record three songs — some of which have never been heard by audiences.
“To finally have the chance to record them means a lot,” Mtengwane said.
She said selection was based on belief in the artists’ submissions and the quality of their material.
The singles cover multiple genres such as gospel, Afro-pop, rap and jazz, with no age limit.
Vocal producer Andile Tsako, who is closely involved in the sessions, said his role was to ensure both musical quality and artist confidence.
“Some of these artists have never recorded with proper equipment before, and my responsibility is to make sure they are comfortable and not intimidated,” he said.
Tsako said pre-production began in early January to help artists understand the process before entering the recording booth.
“We fix things, refine vocal ideas and make sure the soul of the song is clear before it’s recorded, and we need to hear the potential before it becomes a finished product,” he said.
Collaboration was central to the programme, with constant communication among producers, engineers and artists.
The music will be uploaded to digital platforms to allow artists to commercialise their work.
However, Legends Creative Hub is not positioning itself as a record label.
“This project is about exposure and development, not contracts. They leave here not only as recorded artists, but as people who understand the industry,” Tsako said.
Many artists were used to working alone, but the programme introduced them to structured production environments, he added.
“We want them to walk into other spaces confidently and say, ‘we know how this works, because we’ve been exposed’.”–
