Renowned musician Tsepo Tshola has died of Covid-19 related complications, says a report.
Born and bred in Lesotho, the 67-year-old died in his home country on Thursday morning due to Covid-19 complications, the family confirmed in a statement.
Tshola who is known as the Village Pope was hospitalised at a Lesotho hospital after contracting COVID-19.
He has been in the music industry for more than four decades and has dominated audiences across international stages.
He was an award-winning jazz musician whose debut album ‘A New Dawn’ received critical acclaim.
In the 70s, Tshola was part of a musical group called Sankomota.
The band (originally named Uhuru) was from the ‘mountain kingdom’ of Lesotho and was formed around 1976.
It consisted of members such as Frank Leepa, Moss Nkofo, Black Jesus, Moruti Selate and Pitso Sera, among others.
At some point, the group was even banned in South Africa.
In the late 80s, they relocated to London after Tshola joined Hugh Masekela on a world tour. Tshola and Masekela then became friends.
The ‘Ho Lokile‘ hitmaker was last known to be living in the Johannesburg suburb of Kensington where he lived in a Victorian-style home that doubled as the HQ for his label Killer Joe Records.
Some of South African artists such as Joe Nina and Stan Letsela were part of the label.
