"IT was a childhood dream!"
These are the words of a writer, journalist and author with a passion for jazz, literature and South African history, Sam Mathe.
Sam launched the second edition of his book titled From Kippie to Kippies and Beyond on Saturday, 4 May, in Newtown, Joburg.
The 56-year-old was born in Hammanskraal and attended Kwamanala High School in Mpumalanga and Wits University in Joburg.
He started writing at age 19 and his first article appeared in Frontline magazine. He also worked for PACE, Drum magazines and later on as a senior writer for the now-defunct Sunday Sun newspaper.
He attended Wits University primarily to become a writer.
“I was exposed to literature, which introduced me to local writers. That's how I learned more about Es'kia Mphahlele, the Drum writer of the 1950s.”
He published his first book in 2021 and said he combined music and literature, and that's how Kippie to Kippies and Beyond was born.
"When I came to the Sunday Sun in 2004, there wasn't much going on. I looked at jazz musicians and interviewed them. From that came the idea that I could turn some of those interviews into profiles and put them together in book form."
Sam said the inspiration came from the late Es'kia Mphahlele’s short story he read at school and the fact that he and the prof share same name.
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“When I first came across a short story by Es'kia Mphahlele in 1984, I was still in standard 8. At the time, the story was in English, and I only knew indigenous writers who published in African languages. Meeting a black South African writer who wrote in English was a new experience for me, and he also had my name.”
Sam worked for Afropolitan magazine from 2008 to 2011. He said he focused on entrepreneurs and musicians, including veteran musicians the likes of Hugh Masekela, before opening his magazine.
“I opened a magazine in 2013, which I called Jazz Life magazine. That went on until I teamed up with Joy of Jazz because they publish their magazine for clients every year during the festival. I brought Jazz Life on board to cover their content, which was around 2017 to 2018.”
He hopes that his book will help young people get to know themselves better, as his understanding of identity is reflected in our culture.
“I was inspired by the rich musical heritage we have as a country. I was convinced that diversity and the richness of this heritage is worth capturing in a book for posterity. It's part of our history that has unfortunately been neglected by those who claim to be its custodians,” Sam explained.
