Guitar legend Carlos Santana says he would have loved to record an album with South African diva Brenda Fassie if she were still alive.
The musician and his wife, Cindy Blackman Santana, arrived in Cape Town on Sunday for his Divination Tour.
The Black Magic Woman singer will share the stage with local Afro pop group Mango Groove tomorrow night at the Cape Town Stadium.
Speaking during a press conference at the Mount Nelson Hotel on Monday, Santana and Cindy, 58, proudly boasted about recording 49 African songs in just 10 days for their new album, Africa Speaks, The World Listens, set to be released soon.
The 70-year old said: “Something about African music is so unique to me. If there is one artist from South Africa that I would have loved to share a stage with, it’s Brenda Fassie... I love Brenda Fassie immensely, I would have made an album with her if she was still around.”
The Weekend Special hitmaker, known as MaBrrr, died in 2004, reportedly from a cocaine overdose.
Santana became famous in the late ’60s with his band Santana, and pioneered a fusion of rock and Latin American music.
His hit song, Maria Maria which is still popular on local stations, was recently remixed by DJ Khaled and Rihanna into Wild Thoughts.
Santana is set to seduce South Africans once again with his signature guitar sound this week, with shows planned for Cape Town, Johannesburg and, for the first time, Durban.
Tour Itinerary
Cape Town, 11 April
Durban, 13 April
Johannesburg, 14 April
Tickets are available from www.bigconcerts.co.za and Computicket.