{"id":44219,"date":"2025-12-06T12:44:57","date_gmt":"2025-12-06T12:44:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/?p=44219"},"modified":"2025-12-06T12:44:57","modified_gmt":"2025-12-06T12:44:57","slug":"a-true-sa-jazz-legend-tributes-pour-in-for-veteran-musician-pops-mohamed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/2025\/12\/06\/a-true-sa-jazz-legend-tributes-pour-in-for-veteran-musician-pops-mohamed\/","title":{"rendered":"Tributes pour in for Jazz veteran Pops Mohamed"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<p><h2>Mohamed&#8217;s career spanned more than 50 years.<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Tributes are pouring in for South African multi-instrumentalist Pops Mohamed, whose real name was Ismail Mohamed-Jan.<\/p>\n<p>The musician passed away on Thursday, 4 December at the age of 75.<\/p>\n<p>The Department of Sport, Arts and Culture confirmed his death in a statement.<\/p>\n<p>Minister Gayton McKenzie said Mohamed\u2019s passing marked \u201cthe loss of a significant figure in the country\u2019s musical landscape\u201d.<\/p>\n<p><strong>NOW READ: Fabric to bring London\u2019s clubland back to Mzansi<\/strong><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-more-than-50-years-of-greatness\">More than 50 years of greatness<\/h2>\n<p>Born on 10 December 1949 in Benoni, Gauteng, Mohamed built a career that spanned more than 50 years.<\/p>\n<p>He was known as the \u201cMinister of Music\u201d and was recognised for his mastery of instruments including the kora, mbira, African mouth bow, didgeridoo, guitar and keyboard.<\/p>\n<p>Mohamed received several honours during his career. These included the South African Music Awards Lifetime Achievement Award in 2023 and the Arts &amp; Culture Trust Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010.<\/p>\n<p>He also produced <em>Ancestral Healing (from NY to Joburg)<\/em>, which won the FNB SAMA Award for Best Traditional Performance in its third year.<\/p>\n<p>McKenzie described him as \u201ca guardian of our cultural heritage, a teacher, a visionary\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>He added: \u201cHis music carried the voices of our ancestors and opened doors for new generations to embrace and celebrate our roots.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-tributes-for-pops-mohamed\">Tributes for Pops Mohamed<\/h3>\n<p>Fans and other music industry figures have shared their tributes for Mohamed on social media. Here are a few reactions:<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">SAMRO is saddened by the passing of legendary South African multi-instrumentalist and musical visionary Pops Mohamed (Ismail Mohamed-Jan) at the age of 75.<\/p>\n<p>Mohamed challenged boundaries of race, genre, and tradition, and devoted his life to blending African jazz, indigenous\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/2g8rafvPRF\" rel=\"nofollow\">pic.twitter.com\/2g8rafvPRF<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 SAMRO (@SAMROMusic) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/SAMROMusic\/status\/1996843249168683142?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">December 5, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Rest in eternal peace, Bra Pops Mohamed <br \/>(10 December 1947 \u2013 4 December 2025). <br \/>Your vital contributions to our music scene and your dedication to preserving African indigenous instruments have left a lasting legacy that we deeply cherish. We mourn your loss and thank you for the\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/QixopgCR4D\" rel=\"nofollow\">pic.twitter.com\/QixopgCR4D<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Siphiwe Mhlambi (@sphiwemhlambi) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/sphiwemhlambi\/status\/1996917430489129222?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">December 5, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Rest in peace, Pops Mohamed. The absolute best. A true South African jazz legend and one of the most down-to-earth, beautiful souls you could ever meet. Your music and spirit will live forever. Gone too soon. \ud83d\udc94\ud83d\udd4a\ufe0f <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/wV7ACurtMZ\" rel=\"nofollow\">pic.twitter.com\/wV7ACurtMZ<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Lwei (@lweiiiii) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/lweiiiii\/status\/1996919234082099563?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">December 5, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\"\/>\n<p><strong>NOW: Swankie Mafoko confronts grief and alcohol abuse with one-woman show \u2018The Joke Was On Me\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n#Tributes #pour #Jazz #veteran #Pops #Mohamed<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Mohamed&#8217;s career spanned more than 50 years. Tributes are pouring in for South African multi-instrumentalist Pops Mohamed, whose real name&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":44220,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-44219","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mzansi"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44219","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=44219"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44219\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":44221,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44219\/revisions\/44221"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/44220"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=44219"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=44219"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=44219"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}