JOHANNESBURG – It’s exactly 3:31pm on a lazy Thursday afternoon. South Africa’s sultry Afro-soul siren is in final rehearsal for the Herstory national tour.
Her face is upbeat and she exudes an energy that spells contentment and happiness. Her body of work, to date, has surpassed her wildest imagination from just 13 years ago when the pressures of being packaged like a sex object put her in a dilemma between fame and principle.
Thirteen years later she is in a very beautiful place, overflowing with blessings.
“So how have you been girl?” I ask, not realising that I’m opening a tap to a conversation that will last a whole hour non-stop.
“I feel incredibly empowered and very supported as a music artist from South Africa, and it’s such a validating feeling.
“My fans have also been such an enabling factor it blows my mind the kind of things I have been able to do, the calibre of productions we have managed to put up. So I feel unlimited and it’s an exciting feeling.”
Starting off as an R&B singer under 999 Music, Lira says she saw artists join the stable and grow to be successful and that pain of waiting and feeling exploited gave birth to the soldier that she became.
“I think struggle and strife gets you to know yourself better than anything. For me, getting into the music industry was easy, but the experiences I went through after that, I’m talking of the level of struggle and exploitation I had to go through as an artist.
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“Yet, in hindsight this was the best university for the industry that I could have asked for, so in retrospect, I’m thankful. Because I learnt to acknowledge myself and own my skin tone, my body and my voice became the conduit to express what I was feeling,” she said, her eyes beaming with sparkles of triumph.
“I had the freedom to express myself more as a business person. I owned my copyright, my material and my whole being. We are talking of a new page from the history of playing booker, band transport person, manager and promoter all rolled into one, because at that time I was saying to myself: ‘If I don’t do it for myself who will?’
“So my vision included me and my band, succeeding as a collective and I’m so proud of the fact that my band mates all have homes and medical aid as well as investments.”
Arguably, one of the most travelled artists of our time, Lira has performed at the inauguration of United States President Barack Obama with stars whom she had only known by watching on television or at the cinema or reading about in glossy magazines.
Her face lights up again when we talk about her international travels. “Washington for the inauguration was epic. It was amazing being in a certain circle cordoned off and only special people could cross over to that space and here we were rubbing shoulders with top actors and stars.
“Performing at the National Theatre in Stockholm was also a highlight for me. People came out in their numbers to hear the story of this little African girl and I loved the experience.”
Although she has literally been living out of her suitcase for a while now, Lira says she is most gratified when she is on home soil.
“My whole purpose in this life is to display excellence and I think my inspiration comes from my South African heritage. I’m a child who grew up during apartheid and for a while, we accepted mediocrity because the system did not provide and there was no point to aspire to greatness.
“So I found something I loved and was able to make it work and that is my freedom. I don’t have to be stuck in a job I don’t like so now that I have that freedom. I want to be that South African who will be remembered for having done great things worldwide.”
It’s the story of so many musicians who do so well and are celebrated worldwide, yet they always die as paupers. This question pops into my head as a part of me yearns to know if the long history of financial indiscipline, exploitation and at times recklessness is anything that she thinks about while in her prime.
The smile disappears from her face, she shifts position and clears her throat.
“My belief is that your talent is your product and that is what you sell. I have learnt to do so much with so little and those principles have stayed with me since. So, in the band for example, we pay ourselves a salary and that is what you live off and we individually save some for that rainy day.
“When you have money stored somewhere, you then go about the business of enjoying your talent rather than being concerned about surviving. None of my band members abuse drugs because there is nothing to sedate. They do not abuse girls, alcohol or drugs because there is no need we are trying to fulfil and that is powerful.”
Surviving in an industry where trends, “hotness” or style is determined by the media, Lira has somehow successfully managed to stay clear of that space by not giving power to negativity. “I can always feel when I’m being swayed in a certain direction.
If I allow it, basically it means I’m not in control and that makes no sense if I give people power to ‘put me up’ today and ‘put me down’ tomorrow.
People will say nasty things because they are trying to get attention and I have a way of dealing with it. I simply do not care because when I care it means I have no control. I’m clear about my mission and that is what matters to me.”
She has no plans to raise a family any time soon but says when that time comes she will embrace it with both hands. For her next album her collaborative wish list includes Hugh Masekela, Kenny Lattimore and Thandiswa Mazwai.
Lira is very active in the philanthropy space and mentors students from an arts school in Daveyton where she sourced and donated music instruments from Sweden for the school.
Fact and figures Lira was born Lerato Molapo in Daveyton, SA on March 14 1979.
She grew up listening to Stevie Wonder, Miriam Makeba and Aretha Franklin.
She started performing at 16 and was discovered by Arthur Mafokate who signed her to 999 Music in 2000. Three years later, her debut album, All My Love, was released.
After leaving 999, she released a sophomore album Feel Good under Sony Music. In 2010, she joined artistes such as Alicia Keys, Shakira and John Legend as a performer in the 2010 Fifa World Cup Kick-Off Concert.
That year, she made her cinematic debut as the support lead in the Italian feature film Consul.
The release of her DVD, Live In Concert: A Celebration, was certified triple-platinum.
Lira has appeared on the cover of more than 20 magazines around the world and has the largest Facebook following of any South African musician with over 500 000 fans.
She received a BET Awards nomination for best international artist in 2012. With the release of Rise Again, American audiences will experience the magic Lira has brought to European and African audiences.
– New Age
