Government Moves to Honor Late Musician Babsy Mlangeni

Bernard “Babsy” Mlangeni, the celebrated South African musician who died at 83 after a short illness, leaves behind a career of almost six decades, and the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture has moved quickly to mark it as a matter of national heritage. Deputy Minister Peace Mabe will visit the Mlangeni family on Wednesday to convey condolences and pay her respects.

The visit, according to the department, forms part of its stated commitment to honouring and supporting South Africa’s artists and cultural practitioners, particularly those whose contributions have left an enduring mark on the country’s cultural landscape. That commitment has already carried a tangible form of recognition. Mlangeni’s work was acknowledged through the department’s Living Legends initiatives, and in 2025 he received the Artist Living With Disability Award at the National Arts and Culture Awards.

For anyone who follows the cultural economy, the significance lies in what these programmes signal. Recognition instruments such as the Living Legends initiatives and the national awards function as a form of public investment in the reputational value of the country’s creative workforce, sustaining the visibility and, by extension, the continued relevance of artists whose work spans generations, languages and communities. Mlangeni, a singer, guitarist and composer whose distinctive voice resonated across those audiences, was identified by the department as an important figure in South Africa’s musical heritage.

Mabe framed the visit in terms of both solidarity and legacy. She said it is an opportunity to stand with the Mlangeni family during their time of bereavement and to honour a cultural icon whose work continues to form part of the collective memory of South Africans. “Babsy Mlangeni’s contribution to our music and cultural heritage will remain an important part of South Africa’s story. His life demonstrated the power of talent, resilience and creativity, and his music touched generations of South Africans,” she said. “As we stand with the Mlangeni family during this difficult period, we also honour the remarkable legacy that Babsy leaves behind.”

The Deputy Minister is expected to use the visit to convey the department’s deepest condolences to the family and to reflect on the importance of preserving and celebrating the work of South Africa’s cultural legends, a theme that sits at the centre of the department’s cultural policy posture. Preserving the catalogue and memory of artists of Mlangeni’s standing is presented not merely as mourning but as stewardship of a body of work with lasting cultural value.

Meanwhile, the department extended its condolences to the Mlangeni family, friends, fellow musicians, the creative community, and all South Africans mourning the passing of the music legend. “May his family and loved ones find strength and comfort during this difficult time, and may his soul rest in peace,” the department said.

Further details of the Deputy Minister’s visit and the department’s tribute to the late musician are available through the South African Government News Agency at https://www.sanews.gov.za/south-africa/mabe-pay-respects-mlangeni-family, which reported on the arrangements and the department’s statements.

For the creative sector, the episode is a reminder of the relationship between the state and the artists it honours: awards, legacy programmes and ministerial visits are the visible instruments through which public support for cultural practitioners is expressed, and the department has made clear, in the case of Mlangeni, that it regards that support as a continuing obligation rather than a one-time gesture.