Cape Town - Music great Ray Phiri, aged 70, has died after he lost his battle with lung cancer.
He had recently been admitted to a hospital in Nelspruit.
Earlier this week his band mate Richard Mitchell, said that Phiri had exhausted all his private funds, including medical aid funds, and was in need of funding.
In the days leading up to his death, a crowd-funding initiative was started to aid the music veteran. But, according to reports‚ the page was shut down just hours after it had started‚ at the request of the family. It had amassed just under R3 000 of its R50 000 goal - with donations from around the world.
The guitarist nicknamed "Just Now" was the founding member of the Cannibals in the 1970s. When the Cannibals disbanded, Phiri founded Stimela, with whom he created gold and platinum-selling albums like Fire, Passion and Ecstacy (1991), Look, Listen and Decide (1992) as well as the controversial People Don't Talk So Let's Talk.