Born in Johannesburg in 1932. Miriam Makeba's (real name Zenzile Makeba) career began when she became a vocalist for The Manhattan Brothers, one of South Africa's most influential vocal groups. Established already for 20 years, the group welcomed Miriam into its fold in the 1950s, with their first Miriam inclusive recording being published in 1953. As a young girl Miriam had never had the intention of becoming a singer, but her exploits in school and church choirs caused many to convince her that she was naturally talented.
In 1956 Miriam wrote and released one of her most recognisable and famous songs, "Pata Pata", although it wasn't until later that it became popular in America. Towards the end of the 1950s The Manhattan Brothers appeared in a musical about a black boxer called "King Kong", featuring Miriam as the female lead. The show became so successful that the group were able to tour England and bring their music to the attention of the white populace who were previously unaware that they existed. They resigned to continue touring England after their political beliefs prevented them from returning to their homeland. This led to opportunities for Miriam to tour Europe and America, where she came to the attention of Harry Belafonte in the 1960s who helped her re-record "Pata Pata" to become an American hit. Still taking her political views seriously, Miriam testified against apartheid and married Stokely Carmicheal, a leader of The Black Panthers, which caused her to be exiled from South Africa and effectively from the U.S. due to government prodding, and so she took refuge in Guinea.
Effectively her American career was destroyed for some decades. Although she had occasional performances in Europe and Africa in the 1970s along with various recordings, it wasn't until Paul Simon's Graceland tour in the late 1980s that she was able to return to the mass public eye. To this day she is known for her strong political views and her style of "world music", so infused with culture from various places that it has become a genre of its own. Truly she is the queen of African music, and a warrior for freedom and racial equality which earned her the Dag Hammerskjold Peace Prize.
1959 Something New From Africa
1959 New Sounds Of Africa
1960 The Many Voices Of Miriam Makeba
1960 Miriam Makeba
1963 The World Of Miriam Makeba
1964 The Voice Of Africa
1965 Makeba Sings
1965 An Evening With Belafonte/Makeba
1966 The Magic Of Makeba
1968 The Best Of Miriam Makeba
1966 The Magnificent Miriam Makeba
19?? Click Song
1967 All About Miriam
1967 Miriam Makeba In Concert
1967 Pata Pata
1968 Makeba
1970 Keep Me In Mind
1973 Forbidden Games
1974 A Promise
19?? Appel A L'Afrique
1975 Myriam Makeba & Bongi
1977 Au Theatre Des Champs-Elysées
1978 Country Girl
1979 Comme Une Symphonie d'Amour
1988 Sangoma
1990 Kilimanjaro - Live In Conakry
1991 Miriam Makeba
1991 Eyes On Tomorrow
1991 The Queen Of African Music
1991 Miriam Makeba And The Skylarks Vol.1
1991 Africa
1992 The Best of Miriam Makeba And The Skylarks
1993 Sing Me A Song
1994 Folk Songs From Africa
1996 En Public A Paris Et Conakry
1997 Miriam Makeba And The Skylarks Vol.2
2000 Homeland
2001 The Very Best Of Miriam Makeba Manteca
2001 The Guinea Years
2001 Legend - Miriam Makeba
2002 Miriam Makeba
2002 An Evening With Belafonte & Makeba
2002 Miriam Makeba - The Definitive Collection
2002 The Early Years
Everything2 editor's note: Ms Makeba died in Caserta, Italy, on November 9, 2008
Sources: http://w1.871.telia.com/~u87125995/makeba/ - Discography
http://www.artandculture.com/arts/artist?artistId=307 - Some biographical info
"jessicapierce says Hey I notice you don't have Miriam Makeba's album titled simply "Africa" in your list. It may have been released under a different name, I suppose, but it definitely exists - it's one of my favorite albums." - Thanks!