ByQuotes

Hugh Masekela Quotes

Powerful Hugh Masekela for Daily Growth

I'm very interested in heritage restoration, and I'm working with a group of people to create a number of academies and performance spaces to encourage native arts and crafts and to explore African history.

- Hugh Masekela

Explore, Heritage, Very, Native

If I don't make heritage visible and the strength of mother tongue important for my grandchildren, it scares me that they might say in 20 years from now, 'Well, it is rumoured that we used to be Africans long ago.' And in many urban areas, it's already happening.

- Hugh Masekela

Strength, Tongue, Used, Heritage

Watching a Kirk Douglas movie, 'Young Man With A Horn,' made me want to be a trumpet player.

- Hugh Masekela

Young, Movie, Made, Kirk

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

Fact, Raw Materials, Stood, Materials

I think the most difficult thing that has had to happen in South Africa for the previously disadvantaged communities is they had to reconcile that the oppressor has been enriched and the establishment is now making five or 10 times more profit than they were during the time the economic embargo was on them.

- Hugh Masekela

Been, I Think, Disadvantaged, Most Difficult Thing

For me to want to play the trumpet was a very, very odd thing for my clan as a whole. One of my uncles was a high school principal, and he referred to my trumpet as a bugle, which really hurt me.

- Hugh Masekela

Play, Very, Which, Hurt

I started playing the piano when I was 6 years old 'cause my folks tried to get me away from the gramophone. And I just - I lived for music since I could think. And they got me piano lessons. So by the time I was 13, I was quite an accomplished piano player and musician.

- Hugh Masekela

Away, Cause, By The Time, Piano Player

What people don't know about oppression is that the oppressor works much harder. You always grew up being told you were not smart enough or not fast enough, but we all lived from the time we were children to beat the system.

- Hugh Masekela

Smart, About, Works, Oppressor

I couldn't get away from the gramophone. It was the only thing that I ever really liked, and I was singing along by the time I was five years old - to the Modernaires and Billie Holiday and Frank Sinatra and Nat King Cole.

- Hugh Masekela

Away, Frank, By The Time, None

Not only in Africa but in much of the world, most leaders' pockets are lined by industrial business. And industrial business is never going to stop aiming at profit.

- Hugh Masekela

Business, Africa, Going, Profit

I grew up with protests, marches, demonstrations, struggle. But I come from a clan of community workers.

- Hugh Masekela

Demonstrations, Marches, Protests

The thing that is being lost is heritage. In Africa, religion and advertisement and television and media hype have gotten Africans to where they are convinced psychologically that their own heritage is heathen, pagan, barbaric, savage, primitive.

- Hugh Masekela

Africa, Primitive, Gotten, Barbaric

I want to see Nelson walking down the streets of South Africa; I want to see him walking hand-in-hand with Winnie Mandela.

- Hugh Masekela

Africa, South Africa, South, Mandela

Mandela was chosen as a symbol of the South African struggle, and he did that great. But I wasn't just happy for him. I was happy for the people.

- Hugh Masekela

Happy, Symbol, South, Mandela

Just because Nelson has been released doesn't mean the government has done us any favors. We have nothing to be grateful for. The government destroyed our country, destroyed our people. If anybody needs amnesty, it is the government.

- Hugh Masekela

Country, Been, Anybody, Nelson

In my view, Africa's real problems are cultural.

- Hugh Masekela

View, Cultural, Africa, Real Problems

The apartheid people were actors, and they had to act out their part in their beliefs every day. That's why we always saw them as being comedic.

- Hugh Masekela

Every Day, Always, Apartheid, Comedic

Whatever you go into, you have to go in there to be the best. There's no formulas. It's all about passion and honesty and hard work. It might look glamorous, but it takes a lot of hard work. The blessing with the arts is that you can do it forever.

- Hugh Masekela

Work, Might, Formulas, Blessing

I'm not a Christian. My participation in music is so full blast, 24 hours a day. And that's my religion. I think I'm as spiritual as the pope, because I spend as much time in my spirituality as he does.

- Hugh Masekela

Participation, I Think, Pope, Blast

Once in a while, I treat myself to a cheesecake or carrot cake.

- Hugh Masekela

Cake, Treat, Once, Cheesecake

I have a major respect for nature. I'm an environmentalist.

- Hugh Masekela

Nature, Respect, Major, Environmentalist

Twenty years ago, I was part of a movement of millions of people who were going after freedom. But today, they look and they say, 'What are the advantages of freedom?' So far, it's the vote and maybe, in certain places, lack of police harassment. You can live anywhere you want and do anything you want - if you have the means.

- Hugh Masekela

Maybe, Part, Anywhere, Twenty

In some townships, political parties are run by thugs financed from Cape Town. If we don't have support of the police, we can not have the ability to organize and to gain even a slight semblance of power.

- Hugh Masekela

Some, Semblance, Slight, Organize

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

Been, South, Uprising, Marches

I don't criticise anybody, but I just don't understand religion. Like I don't understand nationalism. These are the two things that cause wars. I don't understand why they are supposed to be good things.

- Hugh Masekela

Understand, Like, Anybody, Good Things

To tell you the truth, man, we spend most of the time travelling in hotels, in festivals, in concert halls, clubs, airports. The most unenjoyable part is all the security at airports.

- Hugh Masekela

Tell, Festivals, Travelling, Hotels

One of the greatest things that could really happen to Africa is for us to get rid of the borders and for the leadership not to think that the countries belong to them... We didn't create the borders to start with.

- Hugh Masekela

Think, Happen, Africa, Greatest Things

When I left South Africa there were 10 million people - when I came back there were more than 40 million. I had to learn how to get to the highways because when I left where there were no highways.

- Hugh Masekela

Africa, South Africa, South, Highways

I think it is incumbent on all human beings to oppose injustice in every form.

- Hugh Masekela

Injustice, Think, I Think, Incumbent

I don't think what I do is influenced by suffering. I come from a talented people who are prolific in music and dance.

- Hugh Masekela

Think, Influenced, Prolific, Talented

If you're searching for quotes on a different topic, feel free to browse our Topics page or explore a diverse collection of quotes from various Authors to find inspiration.

We use cookies to improve your experience. By continuing, you accept our Privacy Policy.
★