Africa Remember

[Intro] Yeah… Africa rise… Africa remember… From Cape to Cairo, hear the ancestors calling… Bayede… bayede! One Africa, one people, one destiny. [Verse 1] They stood up when the night was long, With freedom in their hearts and a freedom song. Mandela walked through the prison walls, Sankara dreamed of a land standing tall. Lumumba spoke for the Congo free, Biko said, “Black man, you must be free.” Nkrumah cried, “Africa unite!” But the guns came down in the dead of night. They promised peace, they promised change, But behind closed doors they played their game. Bathi siyabusa, kodwa bayasikhohlisa, They shake our hands while they sell our motherland. Hamba kahle, qhawe lam! Your blood still speaks across the land. [Chorus] Africa, remember your sons, Khumbula, khumbula amaqhawe ethu. They fought for the freedom of everyone, But some were betrayed by the very ones Who said: “We are brothers, we are one.” Oh Africa, Africa, don’t cry, The spirits of the heroes are still alive. Ubuntu, ubuntu, siyaphila, One people, one heart, one Africa. [Verse 2] Lumumba was taken, his voice was denied, But the Congo still remembers the tears that were cried. Sankara stood firm, he refused to bow, He said Africa must feed herself now. They took his life, but they couldn’t take the dream, His words still flow like a mighty stream. Biko awakened the soul of the black man, “I am Black, I am proud,” was the battle plan. They tried to silence the voice of the youth, But truth don’t die when you bury the truth. Asikhulume iqiniso, let the truth be known, Africa’s pain is written in every stone. Abahambanga, basaphila ngaphakathi kwethu, They are gone from the flesh, but they live within us. [Chorus] Africa, remember your sons, Khumbula, khumbula amaqhawe ethu. They fought for the freedom of everyone, But some were betrayed by the very ones Who said: “We are brothers, we are one.” Oh Africa, Africa, don’t cry, The spirits of the heroes are still alive. Ubuntu, ubuntu, siyaphila, One people, one heart, one Africa. [Bridge — spoken / dub style] Listen, Africa… Don’t let history become a story they rewrite. Don’t let the children forget who paid the price. UNkulunkulu uyabona… God sees everything. Amadlozi ayasikhumbuza… The ancestors remind us. From Johannesburg to Kinshasa, From Accra to Luanda, From Harare to Maputo, From Dakar to Dar es Salaam… Africa must rise! Africa must unite! Vuka Africa! Vuka! Vuka! Vuka! [Verse 3] They drew the borders, divided the land, Put brother against brother with a foreign hand. But the drum still beats underneath the ground, And the African spirit still carries the sound. We don’t need another war, We need justice at the people’s door. No more leaders serving foreign gold, No more African dreams being bought and sold. Asifuni inkohlakalo, We don’t want corruption. Asifuni ukucindezelwa, We don’t want oppression. Give the children knowledge, give the people bread, Let the dreams of our ancestors live instead. [Final Chorus] Africa, remember your sons, Khumbula, khumbula amaqhawe ethu. From the mountains to the setting sun, Their struggle lives in everyone. Oh Africa, Africa, don’t cry, Mandela’s dream will never die. Ubuntu, ubuntu, siyaphila, One people, one heart, one Africa. [Outro] Hamba kahle, amaqhawe ethu… Rest well, our heroes… Lumumba… Sankara… Biko… Nkrumah… And all the sons and daughters Who gave their lives for Africa… Vuka Africa… Phakama Africa… Africa must rise… One love. One Africa. One destiny.