The one thing the founders of Joyous Celebration insist on is that their members come and go. They do not necessarily chase the singers away, but they do encourage them to spread their wings and become solo artists.
Over the years we have had success stories from the likes of Thabo Mdluli, Brian Temba and Ntokozo Mbambo who were all in the choir but are now solo artists. The latest product from Joyous Celebration to follow this path is the talented songbird, Mahalia Buchanan, who is putting the final touches to her debut album.
“2015 has been a great year. I have just recorded my debut album live at the Soweto Theatre. Prior to that I had a single called New Dimension and it was a hype leading up to the album. Whoever has been following me also knows where I am in music,” she said excitedly.
Staying true to her life and the lessons she’s learnt from it, Buchanan penned an inspirational album which she hopes will touch many lives.
“My album is called Redeemed to Worship and I wanted to speak about the love of God and His power to redeem us. I have amazing songs which I had from amazing writers who worked hard to keep the essence of the theme. It’s a beautiful yet different sound from what people think about when they hear about me. It’s experimental and not your normal type of gospel. We have beautiful acoustic sounds. I had an opportunity to do a Juanita Bynum song, One Night With The King, which had a 10-piece orchestra, and that was a beautiful experience,” she explained.
Buchanan is very clear about whom she wants to target with this project.
“It is a very young project that is aimed at young people because I aim to be that young ambassador for people my age. Some of them don’t even know what ‘redemption’ means so I wanted to make it as relative as possible. I even had only young people work on this project; no one is over 30,” she said.
To keep her voice clear and audible throughout the project, Buchanan only had one person feature on the album.
“I featured Xolani Mdlalose who is also from Joyous Celebration. It helps because he has a good, traditional yet young vibe to him,” she said.
Anyone who has been with Joyous Celebration knows that it is a well-oiled machine so leaving to attempt a solo career can be a hard step. Buchanan agreed.
“Flying solo can be a very lonely journey. You have to be confident about your product. I have a belief that there is a difference between just recording something so that it goes out there and doing it to say something. I feel I have something to say. Going it all alone is difficult and you are at the forefront of everything that really happens in the music industry,” she said.
Yet with all that hard work there is some pay-off and already certain destinations beyond our shores are calling for her to perform.
“I have a tour coming up in the US later in the year. We will be travelling to five states to showcase the material. I am excited to be exposed to that market because it is a huge market. I am hoping to become a familiar face that side. It’s a big breakthrough for me, especially because this is only my first album,” she said.