Gallo staff mourn 'soft-spoken' star

2007-10-19 12:14

Verashni Pillay

Johannesburg - Gallo music staff are grief-stricken after the senseless murder of beloved reggae star, Lucky Dube, on Thursday night.

Dube, 43, was shot dead in a hijacking while dropping off his son and daughter, aged 15 and 16, in Rosettenville, Johannesburg.

Gallo Music Group CEO, Ivor Haarburger, told News24 on Friday that he was struggling with the death of his friend. "If somebody had to say Lucky I want your car, just take the bloody car, but to shoot the guy..."

Dube, who had been with Gallo for over 20 years and had an office in the building and had become friends with Haarburger and others at Gallo.

"For me it was not just a business relationship it was a personal relationship," said Haarburger. "He knew my family, he came to my home. He knew every staff member."

Tough background

The hard-working musician from a tough background was well-respected in the music industry.

"He was the sort of the artist who, if he had an interview at 08:30, was ready at 08:20," said Haarburger. "He was so well organised.

"He was a soft-spoken, fabulous person."

Lucky Dube, who earned his name after several failed pregnancies by his mother, became a musician despite the tough circumstances he grew up in.

His single mother, a domestic worker, struggled to make ends meet. According to his website, Dube began working at the age most western children enter school, doing garden work in affluent white suburbs.

He was a star member of his school's choir, and his interest in music was further piqued after he discovered a cupboard full of instruments at his school.

It was the start of an international career that saw Dube earn a wide fanbase internationally, becoming one of South Africa's top-selling record artists.

"We've had phonecalls from Rwanda, Kenya, London," said Haarburger. "He had a lot of fans."

Fresh outcry against crime

Dube, whose estranged father was an alcoholic, abstained from alcohol, marijuana and smoking He sang about political and social issues, and shared stages with artists such as Maxi Priest, Sinead O-Connor, Peter Gabriel, Michael Jackson, Seal, Ziggy Marley, Celine Dion and Sting.

His death has sparked a fresh outcry against violent crime in South Africa.

Johannesburg police were on Friday looking for three men driving a blue VW Polo believed to have been involved in Dube's murder.

- News24