Todd Matshikiza was born in 1921 in Queenstown, South Africa. He not only had a musical career, but a literary one as well. He was a musician, teacher, and writer for Drum magazine. During his time as a teacher at the Lovedale Institute in Alice he composed the notable song Hamba Kahle, which was played for Queen of England in 1946 as she was arriving in Bulawayo.
In the late 1940s he opened the Todd Matshikiza School of Music where he taught the piano.
He is famous for writing the compositions of the musical King Kong. In 1958 he composed and contributed lyrics to it.
After following the play King Kong to England in the 1960s, he decided to stay there. While in England he played at jazz clubs, and wrote for British journals.
In 1964 he moved back to Africa with his family to be a Zambian newscaster. Three years later he became a music archivist for the Zambian Information Service. He died one year later in 1968.
References: South African History Online.
http://www.sahistory.org.za/people/todd-tozama-matshikiza
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