21+ Hugh Masekela Quotes On Music, Down Track And Soulful

Hugh Masekela was a South African trumpeter, singer, and composer. He was an influential figure in the jazz and world music scenes, and was an advocate for the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa. He was known for his distinctive style of playing and his collaborations with other musicians, including Paul Simon and Miriam Makeba. Following is our collection on famous quotes by Hugh Masekela on love, music, life.

Top 10 Hugh Masekela Quotes

1. I've got to where I am in life not because of something I brought to the world but through something I found - the wealth of African culture.
2. The Afro-American experience is the only real culture that America has. Basically, every American tries to walk, talk, dress and behave like African Americans.
3. It's obvious that the rest of the world loves high African culture - African culture, period.
4. I grew up with protests, marches, demonstrations, struggle. But I come from a clan of community workers.
5. When people campaign for positions, they promise people all kinds of things.
6. I don't think what I do is influenced by suffering. I come from a talented people who are prolific in music and dance.
7. In my view, Africa's real problems are cultural.
8. When I left South Africa in 1960 I was 20 years old. I wanted to try to get an education, and music education was not available for me in South Africa.
9. I'm travelling more than ever. I don't have the answer as to why, but the demand seems to have grown as I've got older.
10. I always make the joke that I go home, to one of my homes, to go and do laundry so I can go on the road again.

Hugh Masekela Short Quotes

• I am a forward-looking person and live in the moment to build for the future.
• I think it is incumbent on all human beings to oppose injustice in every form.
• All my experiences removed geography from my world.
• My biggest obsession is to show Africans and the world who the people of Africa really are.
• I lived for music since I could think.
• Africa has been troubled for a long time - well, the world has been troubled ever since I was born.

Hugh Masekela Famous Quotes And Sayings

I had to run away from home in order to be a musician. Because I came from a family of... my father was a health inspector; my mother was a social worker. And I was pretty smart in school. So they expected me to be some kind of academic - schoolteacher, or doctor, lawyer - and they were very disappointed when I told them I wanted to be a musician. — Hugh Masekela

I've always stood on one fact - that all over the world, there are only two things, the Establishment and the poor people. The poor people are a massive majority and across the world they are exploited in different kinds of ways. The Establishment depends on exploiting raw materials and the poor. — Hugh Masekela

I just came from South Africa, a place that had been in a perpetual uprising since 1653, so the uprising had become a way of life in our culture and we grew up with rallies and strikes and marches and boycotts. — Hugh Masekela

I don't think any musician ever thinks about making a statement. I think everybody goes into music loving it. — Hugh Masekela

I think that anybody from the 20th century, up to now, has to be aware that if it wasn't for Louis Armstrong, we'd all be wearing powdered wigs. I think that Louis Armstrong loosened the world, helped people to be able to say "Yeah," and to walk with a little dip in their hip. Before Louis Armstrong, the world was definitely square, just like Christopher Columbus thought. — Hugh Masekela

Life Lessons by Hugh Masekela

1. Hugh Masekela's music and activism showed the power of art to bring people together and to fight for justice.
2. His work demonstrated the importance of using music to bring attention to the struggle for freedom and equality.
3. He was a passionate advocate for the rights of black South Africans and his legacy continues to inspire people to stand up for what is right.