Owabulala uBaba lyrics by SIHAYO, featuring Shenge Wasehlalankosi, is a masterpiece South African Maskandi song. The title translates to “The one who killed my father“ in isiZulu.
The song “Owabulala uBaba” (featuring Shenge wasehlalankosi) came out as a single on June 12, 2026, released by Zeligeh Productions.
The song has been trending recently because of the title. It captures the minds of music listeners because we know the song carries a very serious and heavy message.
Owabulala uBaba is a song with a special attributes. Here is the breakdown of what this special and unique.
The trending new South African song Owabulala uBaba is a story of loss. The main theme of the track is grief. It tells the story of a family dealing with the sudden death of their father. It focuses on the pain of losing a parent and the deep need to find out the truth about what happened to him. What an interesting song!. This is the kind of song that captures the minds of an African.
African loves folktales and SIHAYO utilize the opportunity to tell an amazing story of his father. It uses the Maskandi sound. As a Maskandi track, the music feels very raw and grounded. This genre is famous for using the acoustic guitar to create a steady, walking rhythm. The singing comes straight from the heart, making the sadness in the singer’s voice easy to hear, even if you do not speak the language.
Shenge Wasehlalankosi, brings a traditional element to the song. In Maskandi music, artists often pause the singing to perform fast, spoken poetry. This is a way to show respect to their culture, their family names, and the ancestors. His part likely adds a strong, demanding voice to the search for justice. It is called the Power of Spoken Words.
Owabulala uBaba Quotable lyrics.
- “Heeey wayekhala umamah” (Hey, my mother was crying)
- “Ekhala kabuhlungu umamah edabukisa” (My mother was crying bitterly, it was heartbreaking/pitiful to see)
- “Heey kwaba buhlungu mhla ngibona umamah” (Hey, it was so painful the day I saw my mother)
- “Ekhala kabuhlungu eshonelwa ubaba” (Crying bitterly, grieving the passing of my father)
- “Hoo muntu owabulala ubaba ngyafisa” (Oh, to the person who killed my father, I wish)
- “Ukubamba ngesandla Sami ngimxhawule” (To hold you by my hand and shake your hand)
- “Hee ngithi mfwe2 cha noko uyakwazi” (Hey, and say, “My brother, no, you really know how…)
- “Ukwenza impilo yomunye umuntu” (…to make another person’s life…)
- “Ilibe nzima” (…become terribly difficult.”)
This song lyrics paint a deeply emotional and tragic picture of grief, trauma, and irony. SIHAYO witnessed an immense trauma as he wrote the song with tears and heartbreak. The first half of the verse focuses entirely on the singer’s mother. The pain of losing his father is magnified by the trauma of having to watch his mother mourn so deeply (“it was so painful the day I saw my mother crying bitterly”).
The second half takes a surprising and dark turn. Instead of threatening revenge or expressing pure anger toward the murderer, the singer says he wants to meet the killer just to shake his hand. What a figure of speech!
He wants to sarcastically “congratulate” the killer, calling him “mfwe2” (short for mfwethu, meaning “my brother”). By saying, “You really know how to make another person’s life difficult,” the singer is highlighting the catastrophic, rippling damage the killer has caused.
Watch this amazing South African song on YouTube.
It is a very raw, poetic way of expressing a pain so deep that it goes beyond standard anger—it is sheer disbelief at how easily one person can destroy a family’s entire world.
SIHAYO sarcastically praised the murderer. He said,
- “Lomuntu owabulala ubaba ngiyafisa ukumubamba ngesandla sami ngimuxhawule” (This person who killed my father, I wish to take him by my hand and shake his hand)
- “Ngithi Mfwethu Cha nokho uyakwazi ukwenza impilo yomunye umuntu ibenzima” (And say, “My brother, wow, you really know how to make another person’s life hard”)
- “LOMUNTU OWABULAL UBABA NGIYAFISA UKUMBAMBA NGESANDLA SAMI NGIMUXHAWULE” (THIS PERSON WHO KILLED MY FATHER, I WISH TO HOLD HIM BY MY HAND AND SHAKE IT)
- “OH NGITHI KUYE” (OH, AND SAY TO HIM)
- “NGITHI MFWETHU CHA NOKHO IYAKWAZI UKWENZA IMPILO YOMUNYE UMUNTU IBENZIMA” (I SAY, “MY BROTHER, NO, YOU TRULY KNOW HOW TO MAKE ANOTHER PERSON’S LIFE HARD”)
- “WAYEKHALUMAMA” (MY MOTHER WAS CRYING)
- “WAYEKHALA UMAMA EKHALA KABUHLU UMAMA EDABUKISA OKWABA NZIMA” (MY MOTHER WAS CRYING, CRYING BITTERLY, MY MOTHER WAS HEARTBREAKING TO WATCH, IT WAS HARD)
- “Kwaba buhlungu mhla ngibona umama ekhala kabuhlungu eshonelwe ubaba” (It was painful the day I saw my mother crying bitterly, mourning the loss of my father)
