South African Jewish musician Johnny Clegg to receive OBE

The OBE will be presented to Clegg, at a date still to be announced, as part of the Queen’s 2015 Birthday Honours List.

By SHAWN RODGERS
SOUTH AFRICAN singer Johnny Clegg performs during the South Africa Gala night at the Monte Carlo opera in 2012. (photo credit: SEBASTIEN NOGIER/REUTERS)
SOUTH AFRICAN singer Johnny Clegg performs during the South Africa Gala night at the Monte Carlo opera in 2012.
(photo credit: SEBASTIEN NOGIER/REUTERS)
Johnny Clegg, the South African artist, activist and philanthropist fondly known as the “White Zulu,” was granted an Order of the British Empire on Saturday.
The OBE will be presented to Clegg, at a date still to be announced, as part of the Queen’s 2015 Birthday Honours List.
Clegg has received this acknowledgment for his activism against apartheid as well as for his charity work.
He has played a major role in bringing South Africa together through his music and actions.
In a statement, British High Commissioner to South Africa Judith Macgregor said: “This is a recognition of Johnny’s unique services to the arts, vulnerable people and children and to democracy in South Africa. I am particularly pleased that we are able to celebrate his achievements of the past three decades.”
Clegg first rose to prominence when he formed Juluka with Sipho Mchunu in the late 1970s. Drawing heavily on traditional Zulu music, the band released a string of popular albums.
Clegg formed another crossover band, Savuka (meaning “we have risen”), finding a huge degree of international success both at home and abroad.
More recently Johnny has released solo albums like New World Survivor (2002) and Human (2010).
Clegg said he was planning to align receiving the award with performances