guitarist / singer / composer / producer, 1956 Johannesburg South Africa.
He started his musical career in Zimbabwe in the seventies inspired by Earth, Wind and Fire while working to fuse those sounds with Shona and Ndebele musical traditions tp produce and indigenous African pop groove. But his interest in traditional musici and composing took his talent in directions far more varied than pop music. He produced albums for most of the country’s world music stars, including Thomas Mapfumo. He helped to build an innovative formal and informal teaching programme focusing on modern and traditional popular music. At the same time he worked with : Talking Drum,Ilanga, Mudzimu, Southern Freeway and Musik ye Afrika. Mhlanga has an extensive Zimbabwean discography, ranging from popular and traditional music to gospel and soul.
In London he worked with Paul Weller and performed all over the world with Nigerian juju star King Sunny Ade, Hugh Masekela, Busi Mhlongo, Sipho ”Hotstix” Mabuse, Khumalo, Ray Phiri, Semenya, Vusi Mahlasela and Stef Bos.
Louis Mhlanga can be considered one of the main Zimbabwean musicians with an international career whose music is full of polyrhytms and rich melodies, based on ancient spiritual music combining elements of the broad scala of pop- and world music.