The death has been announced of Siphiwo Ntshebe, the South African tenor who was due to star in the opening ceremony of the 2010 World Cup. According to his record label he died on Tuesday, having been admitted to hospital last week with meningitis.
Siphiwo had been chosen by Nelson Mandela to sing at the opening ceremony in Johannesburg. He was to perform ‘Hope’, and anthem that he had also composed and that includes a recording of Mandela’s voice.
His record label, Epic, have as yet to decide whether to go ahead with the release of the track and of the album of the same name. However, they said that Ntshebe's family wanted his music "to be heard by as wide an audience as possible".
Lebo M, the producer for the opening ceremony described Ntshebe as "a true South Africa World Cup legacy, gone too soon" and added "May his spirit lead us to 11 June 2010. May his soul rest in peace and may Siphiwo's spirit of hope centre us all.”
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