Brenda is still relevant because her legacy lives on, despite the fact that she is no longer with us – through her music and through this very friendly memorial. It is a human-scale statue of South Africa’s loved MABRRR!! That people passing by can literally ‘embrace’ – by hopping up on stage next to her”.
The whole idea was to keep our chosen historical newsmakers on this project as tangible as possible. And for those youngsters who, have not heard of Brenda and her music, well, they will be able to find out simply by reading the story on the plaque. I also think that that even if you weren’t aware of Brenda, you would get a very real sense of the kind of performer she was seeing Angus Taylor’s brilliant life-size statue because the sass, the fun, the informality and something of her passion, come through in her pose, her clothes and, for the more dedicated excavator of musical history, exquisite tiny etched writing all over her body – quotes taken directly from the great diva in life”.
History and heritage are not always about important political figures (with capital letters). The Brenda Fassie memorial shows South Africa’s playful side – Brenda Fassie made generations of music lovers Happy. – Head of the Sunday Times Heritage Project at the time Charlotte Bauer:
Visit Brenda Fassie’s 1.57m life-size statue outside the Bassline Club in Newtown, Johannesburg.
