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So, after my previous post about the South African anthem being sung at the SA versus France game, Ras Dumisani has generated his own meme. The internet, radio and even TV is buzzing with talk about the botched SA anthem.

There's a phrase saying that there's no such thing as bad publicity, but the Ras Dumisani incident may just test this chestnut to the max, with a whole lot of less than nice things being said about the singer.

Here's an audio clip of Ras on radio giving a "better" version of the national anthem than the one he delivered at the stadium on the night of the rugby match.

Ras Dumisani singing the South African Anthem by lesterhein

People are de-moer-in. Highly bedondered. Pissed off and Bevok. And it's all thanks to the way that the national anthem was performed at the SA vs France rugby match on Friday night. I didn't catch the game, but I had heard of the ermm...rendition from a few buddies and decided to check it out.

Here it is:



(if you're reading this on Facebook, go here to watch the video)

My first response was "those bloody frenchmen." But it turns out, I was wrong. In an article published by the UK's Telegraph newspaper, the identity of the singer was revealed. Ras Dumisani is a dude from Durban. Our side.

Here's an extract from the Telegraph article:

"I must convey that we are annoyed by the fact that the French disrespected our anthem," blasted South Africa coach Peter de Villiers.

"They didn't get someone who really knows the thing and show any respect for it. We expect people to show respect to the anthem of any other country."

But Dumisani was aghast that de Villiers and other Bok players were unhappy with his rendition.

"Everyone at the stadium told me I sang well, even after the match. The Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika has been my tune since a baby," he said. "How can I not know the words?

Personally, I'm a little upset myself. I like our anthem. It has four languages and a catchy tune. It confused little children and Americans. And for someone to come along and botch it on an international stage is not acceptable. I think that maybe the organisers should have checked with Ras if he knew all the words before they booked him for the gig....

What do you think?

UPDATE - Ras Dumisani was given a chance to tell his side on the story on radio. Click here to listen to the clip from the Redi Direko show on 567 Cape Talk

http://lesterhein.blogspot.com/2009/11/danger-ras.html