“Thank you for singing with us, we will give you one of our Grammys”, said Thulani Shabalala while getting the audience involved. “It’s ok, we have four”.

That charm and humor was present for the entire performance by acclaimed Grammy-winning choral group Ladysmith Black Mambazo. They performed in Stephens Auditorium on the afternoon of Super Bowl Sunday to a diverse audience of Ames locale.

Thulani is just the oldest of three Shabalala siblings in the Mbube group, the others being Sibongiseni Shabalala and, the youngest, Thamsanqua Shabalala. Their father, Joseph Shabalala, was the initial founder of the group back in 1960 and has since retired, passing the torch to the young Thamsanqua.

He was impressionable from the start because he was in front of the group, signifying his mantle of responsibility. He sang the leads on the early songs before swapping positions with his brothers and letting them share the spotlight.

They took the stage with delight and made people chuckle from the beginning with their funny dance moves and heartwarming ways of speech. They had no instruments except for their voices, and boy, did they utilize every ounce of their god-given talent — particularly the Shabalala’s, who fit in just right in the group alongside veterans such as Albert Mazibuko and his brother, Abednego Mazibuko.

In a recent interview I had with Albert, he spoke of the changing format of the group over the years.

“With new members come new ideas, and a lot more energy,” Mazibuko said.

During the show, itself, Albert made sure to note “The young men in our group must respect our traditions and learn from fathers and grandfathers. This is to keep the mission of Ladysmith Black Mambazo alive, to spread Peace, Love and Harmony.”

At least one these themes were present with every song they performed, and even though many songs were in their native language, they strangely made sense. And when English phrases were mixed in, those lyrics were prominent and impactful.

Every song began with a short introduction to explain what they were singing and as premise for their stories. For example, “King of Kings,” which is one of Albert Mazibukos favorite songs to perform, is a song in exclamation for world peace.

Another song they performed that has gotten a lot of attention is “Long Walk to Freedom,” which features beautiful storytelling, documenting the journey of Dr. Nelson Mandela, the man who led the liberation of South Africa and was elected as the nation’s president.

“It is him that we owe over 20 years of democracy to”, said Sibongiseni Shabalala. “It is because of him we all work and walk together.”

It was extremely impressive the way the men layered their melodies together. Every chord they struck they did so as a group, and it was beautiful.

I could have guessed that the men of Ladysmith Black Mambazo were talented, but I wasn’t expecting the generous amount of dancing involved at all. They kicked and swayed with the chorus and made the audience laugh with funny mannerisms.

When they sang about girls, they pretended to be girls to simulate a transfer of storytelling. The show-stopping moments included when they busted into customary kicking solos. One of the members would take center stage and kick to the beat with exaggerated motions. These traditional African kicks rivaled that of the Rockettes. Even an older member like Albert, who is pushing 70 years old, was getting his leg up high.

The dancing that accompanied every song really helped the group express themselves, and shed light on what they meant when they spoke in foreign tongue.

Overall it was a great if not enlightening show. I only wished more people from the community could have made it out to see the group, but Super Bowl Sunday is a tough day to draw people out of their homes. If the job of Ladysmith Black Mambazo was to spread South African culture and lessons, then they nailed it, perhaps the smiles on everyone’s faces is just a bonus.