Pops Mohamed - † December 4, 2025 - Multi-instrumentalist, jazz musician and music producer.

Mohamed was born in Benoni, east of Johannesburg. He grew up in the Kalamazoo district, which was later cleared and demolished as part of the apartheid policies. He was nicknamed Pops because, as a child, he loved to eat spinach, like Popeye. At the Dorkay House in Johannesburg, he attended concerts by Abdullah Ibrahim and Kippie Moeketsi.

A self-taught musician, he joined the band The Valiants at the age of 14, remaining with them until 1971. He then had a hit with the band Children’s Society, "I’m a Married Man." In the late 1970s, he played with jazz musicians Basil Coetzee and Sipho Gumede in the band Movement in the City. From 1979 to 1984, he studied jazz at the Fuba School of Music.

From 1981, Mohamed worked as a sound engineer, and from 1988 as a record producer. He became known for his diverse use of traditional and modern styles; for example, on his 1996 album *How Far Have We Come*, he explores San music and blends it with typical South African township music such as soul, pop, and kwela. Since 1986, he has been playing traditional instruments like the mouth bow, musical bow, bird whistle, didgeridoo, lamellophone, and kora, which he plays alongside modern instruments (guitar, keyboard, synthesizer). His nickname is Minister of Music.

Mohamed produced *Finding One’s Self*, an award-winning album by jazz pianist Moses Taiwa Molelekwa. He wrote songs such as "Lolly’s Song" and "A New Hope!"

Awards:

The albums *Kalamazoo* and *Sophiatown Society* were nominated for the South African OKTV Award in the category of "Best Jazz Album." The album Kalamazoo 3, which Mohamed recorded with Sipho Gumede, was nominated for the South African Music Award (SAMA) in the Best Traditional Jazz Album category, as was Ancestral Healing. In 2023, he received the Lifelong Award at the South African Music Awards.

Pops Mohamed x McCoy Mrubata - African Sketches

Long Live Sophiatown (Remastered 2024)

Pops Mohamed - Quandodo (God Help Us)