Singer, songwriter and guitarist George Sibanda was arguably sub-Saharan Africa's first real music star. And as many true legends, he was a flash in the pan. He was discovered by Hugh Tracey in 1948, went on to be the first African to become a radio star in the Rhodesias and Nyasaland and almost immediately had big hits in South Africa.
He was the first music star in Kenya — people didn't understand his lyrics but sung along with the songs anyways.
George was an Ndebele from Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. In his time, the city was a thriving, bustling centre of British colonial Africa. Sibanda earned a lot of money, but by the end of the '50s, he was unable to cope with fame and fortune. He died tragically of alcohol poisoning. It is not known the exact year of his death, but his "era" lasted only eleven years. —Courtesy Calabash Music
