victim. The apartheid system in South Africa provided little opportunity for proper health care, quality education or employment. Its Lucky rigid laws cruelly dictated the movements of blacks. Furthermore, his father had a liquor habit and abandoned the family before he was born. His mother Sarah left shortly after to seek domestic work in Johannesburg, Dube hoping to send money back, rarely able to. He stayed behind in the mud hut, his beloved grandmother caring for him, nourishing him, body and soul. At six months, the boy -- the very lucky-to-be-alive boy -- was finally given a name, Lucky Phillip Dube. He stayed with his grandmother, perhaps the single most influential person in his life. She would often go days without food, making sure Lucky and his siblings ate. When things became Respect desperate, they would sneak and collect sheep droppings from a neighboring farm to boil up into some meager sustenance. At five, Lucky had already learned the Story and photography lesson of responsibility. He began working by Lee Abel as a gardener for white families so that his own family would have a little food. He quickly saw that his employers treated “Bob Marley said, their dogs better than him. When he was ‘How long shall they a little older he was terrorized by a pair of kill our prophets while hounds while their owners laughed. More we stand aside and physical pain would come at the hands of look’ But little did he one of his employers who intimidated him know that eventually into receiving several high-voltage shocks in the enemy will stand a sadistic experiment with a new toy. aside and look while At eight he began attending school and we slash and kill continued working off-hours. He had to get our own brothers up at five o’clock every morning and walk knowing that already nearly nine miles. Often he went the whole they are the victims of day without food in order to get an education. the situation” As a library assistant, he discovered an entry – Victims (1993) on Rastafari in the encyclopedia that was to make a lot more sense to him when he later Delivered by his discovered reggae music coming out of grandmother on a farm Jamaica. Jimmy Cliff was the artist most well near the small mining known to South Africans at that time, because town of Ermelo on his non-threatening music was played on August 3, 1964, he the radio. The more revolutionary music of wasn’t given a name. Marley and Tosh was underground, much of it He wasn’t expected banned. If caught with one of their cassettes, to live. But like every your health and freedom were on the line. other challenge, Lucky listened whenever he could. save one, that was to Top: 2002 – Palo Alto, CA follow in his 43 years, he refused to be a Left: Sunsplash U.S.A. Tour ’92 – Berkeley, CA 48 REGGAEREGGAE FESTIVALFESTIVAL G GUIDEUIDE 2008 2008 After five chart-topping mbaqanga albums, Lucky and Richard went into the Lucky Dube Respect studio in 1984 and recorded Rastas Never Die. The South African Broadcasting In high school Lucky moved to his Corporation banned it from airplay. The album bombed. The record company was uncle’s, where his home life continued to be not happy. The semi-autobiographical film Getting Lucky, complete with a Lucky harsh, yet he was making creative strides Dube mbaqanga soundtrack, had come out and Teal didn’t want to lose their at school. He joined one of the choirs and mbaqanga star to an unpopular musical genre. Never to be deterred, the duo soon stepped into the role of choirmaster tried again the following year. In 1985 “Think About the Children” began to sell when the teacher assigned to it lost interest, and Lucky’s reggae career was set. “Think About the Children” later transformed leading them to a third-place victory in a into one of his well-known hits, “Born to Suffer,” in which he clearly expressed his multi-school competition. He organized concern for those children, like himself, who grow up without a parent. his first band, The Skyway Band, and Before moving on to more reggae projects, Lucky and Richard had one more “borrowed” instruments from a teacher until detour. They recorded a satirical Zulu/rap album in Afrikaans, Help My Krap they were discovered practicing and the (meaning “Help Me Scratch”), under the pseudonym of Oom Hansie (“Uncle Hans”). instruments locked away. At 18 he moved It was a success as well and Lucky added a third set to his shows. Careful to conceal again, this time to his aunt’s house where he his identity, he wore a variety of disguises. Eventually he had to stop out of sheer finally found both sustenance and kindness. exhaustion and fear for his safety from the surging crowds trying to unmask him. His cousin Richard Siluma, 10 years his In 1987, apartheid senior, began to mentor Lucky. Richard was strong, civil unrest was in a band called the Love Brothers was increasing and that played a traditional Zulu music called Lucky was back in mbaqanga. Recognizing Lucky’s vocal the studio making his talent, Richard accepted him into the band. strongest statement A remarkable success story on his own, yet, a seven-track Richard had worked up the ranks at Teal album, simply entitled Records (later known as Gallo). Slave. David Segal, As a record producer, Richard recorded a white, Jewish South Lucky’s first album Lucky Dube and the African, was brought Supersoul (1982), on which Lucky sang but in and became Lucky’s did not write. By his third album, Lucky was lifelong engineer and financially comfortable and was working on friend. The title track proficiency in English in order to communicate spoke to the evils of his message to a wider audience. Reggae alcoholism, including became the vehicle for these messages, with the lyrics, “I’m a lyrics reflecting the anguish of daily life in slave, just a liquor South Africa as well as the uplifting spiritual slave.” Many heard vocabulary of the Rastafarians. He was “legal slave” instead particularly influenced by the militancy of Peter of “liquor slave.” This, Tosh’s music and the stark similarities between coupled with Lucky oppression of blacks in Jamaica and those in naming his backing institutionally racist South Africa. He began band “The Slaves,” adding these songs to his concerts and they elevated him to a were enthusiastically received. The concerts messenger of social were getting longer and included a mbaqanga and political change. set and a reggae set. It was clear early on that The album was a wild Lucky was a dynamic, high-energy performer success, selling over who enjoyed jumping into the crowd and 500,000 copies. Lucky running around the venues while he sang. Dube and the Slaves Richard, who had first seen Jimmy Cliff in now played all-reggae 1976, felt the time was right and encouraged shows to cheering his cousin to do a reggae album. fans of over 50,000 in South Africa, and Top: Sunsplash U.S.A. Tour ’92, Backstage – Berkeley, CA began what would become a lifetime of Bottom: Slim’s 1993 – San Francisco, CA international touring. 50 REGGAE FESTIVAL GUIDE 2008 Lucky Dube Respect horn section and a gorgeous trio of female singers (comparisons to the I Threes duly noted), he immediately commanded the respect of both the crowd and the promoters. “Too many people Hate apartheid His voice was silky smooth, ranging effortlessly from baritone to falsetto. While the music Why do you like it? Hey you Rasta was roots reggae, the dance was more of a South African mbaqanga, and involved man, Hey European, Indian man choreographed moves with the singers and band members. The Jamaicans loved him We’ve got to come together as one” and demanded the only encore of the show. He would play Sunsplash again in 1992, – Together As One (1988) following the Sunsplash U.S.A. tour. Not until 2007 did Lucky again accept an invitation to perform in Jamaica, this time for the Cricket World Cup Opening Ceremonies. Lucky had a vision of a colorblind It was not easy for a South African musician to tour overseas given the embargo on society. Hurt by the injustices heaped on the country in those waning days of apartheid, but he overcame obstacles barring his him by the apartheid system, he was not travel and continued dazzling crowds and selling albums. Victims (1993), the last album bitter. Instead, he sought solutions through released before the African National Congress­­ was voted to power, sold over a million his lyrics and in the process, risked his life copies. With the country’s first one person/one vote election pending, and a high illiteracy to tell the truth. At a time when to sing rate among the new voters, Lucky took time out to visit farms and help educate his people the word “apartheid” was dangerous, let on how to read and mark alone to criticize the government, Lucky the ballots. More than once became the first black artist played on he had to run for his life a white radio station, with the initially when an angry landowner, banned, Together As One title track. gun in hand, disapproved Prisoner, the next album, sold over of his services. a million copies. Alongside themes of With Nelson Mandela personal responsibility (education and finally in office, it was time crime in “Prisoner”) and aching loss to lighten up…just a little (abandonment in “Remember Me”), Lucky bit.