Global Stage for IsiXhosa Poetry

Is the Current Visibility of IsiXhosa Poetic Elements in South African Music a Legitimate Sign of Globalisation?

Abstract

In this article, I interrogate the visibility of isiXhosa poetry and its poetic elements in global music, particularly in the context of cultural globalisation, which frequently results in the commodification, commercialisation, and distortion of indigenous cultural forms to serve the desires of a global capitalist system. Specifically, I focus on how isiXhosa poetic tradition, vastly entrenched in native contexts and the socio-political and economic struggles of amaXhosa, is now being reshaped to fit the commercial appetites of global audiences. Having said this, I then explore the extent to which globalisation influences the representation and legitimacy of isiXhosa poetry in contemporary South African music, applying cultural globalisation as a theoretical framework. Three notable findings emerge. First, isiXhosa poetic elements, as featured in global music by various South African musicians, undergo sanitisation to make them palatable for global markets. Second, the political and cultural significance of isiXhosa poetry risks being diminished as it is reduced to marketable fragments. Third, while global visibility offers opportunities for cultural recognition, it demands conformity to Western market expectations. Ultimately, this article concludes by advocating for the preservation of isiXhosa poetry’s integrity, calling on musical productions and cultural stakeholders to defy commodification and commercialisation, and maintain the integrity of indigenous cultural forms on global platforms.