Salif Keita (Mali) – widely regarded as The Golden Voice of Africa, Keita is one of the most influential artists in African music history, with a career spanning more than five decades. His appearance at Montreux Jazz Festival, Franschhoek is both rare and resonant – a master artist whose presence embodies the festival’s belief in musical legacy, cultural truth and artistic courage.

A pioneer of Afropop, his career has produced more than 20 albums, five Grammy nominations and globally recognised songs such as Yamore and Madan. For Montreux Jazz Festival Franschhoek, Salif will be accompanied by his Electric Band.  

Tracks:

Yamore
Madan
Mandjou
Folon
Tekere
La Différence

Mandisi Dyantyis (SA) – one of South Africa’s most compelling contemporary composers and bandleaders.  Known for his deeply expressive trumpet work and genre-fluid compositions, Dyantyis represents the evolving language of African jazz today – sophisticated, emotive and unafraid to draw from classical, folk and modern influences. His performance underscores Montreux’s commitment to artists who are actively shaping the future of global music from the African continent.  A multi award nominee and award-winning recipient, he has sold out many major stages across South Africa. Mandisi’s 2019 Somandla album was nominated for Best Jazz Artist at the 2019 Mzantsi Jazz Awards and Best Jazz Album at the 2019 SAMAs. His second album, Cwaka, won the 2022 SAMA Award for Best Adult Contemporary Album.

In October 2025, Mandisi released, Intlambululo: Ukuhlambulula, which translates to the act of purification and reflection. The response to this body of work has exceeded all expectations. For Montreux Jazz Festival Franschhoek, Mandisi’s performance will be backed a choir.

Discography:

Somandla (2019)
Cwaka (2022)
Intlambululo: Ukuhlambulula (2025)

Billy Monama’s Guitar Convergence (SA) – brings together acclaimed musicians Moss Mogale and Vusi Mahlasela. This rare convergence of guitar voices promises a powerful and unexpected musical dialogue – rooted in African storytelling, social memory and shared virtuosity. True to the Montreux spirit, this collaboration exists specifically for the festival, offering audiences a moment that cannot be replicated elsewhere.

Billy is part of a new generation of musicians who aim to take the music of the African continent to greater heights, and this historic meeting of strings and styles is pure genius. Moss Mogale was inspired by the late Frans Mothoka Maake and Geoff Mphakathi; while the music of legendary singer-songwriter and activist Vusi Mahlasela, aka “The Voice,” echoed South Africa’s transition to freedom. Together they share stories of the guitar in South African music, featuring styles such as kwela, marabi, mbaqanga, mbube, Mgqashiyo and Malombo. Billy dubs the trio’s union as “a triple threat of guitar convergence”.

Discography:

Billy Monama: Rebounce (2017), The Y Factor Project (2025)
Moss Mogale: Forget Me Not (2000)
Vusi Mahlasela:  Wisdom of Forgiveness (1994) , Miyela Afrika (2000)

The Kesivan amaBig Band Experience ft Boohle, Stogie T and BONJ (SA, Switzerland, France, Spain and Brazil) – a bold collaborative statement led by acclaimed South African drummer and composer Kesivan Naidoo, based between Switzerland and South Africa, who brings together a 26-piece ensemble of South African and European musicians, with strong Swiss representation. The project reimagines Amapiano, traditionally electronic and groove-driven, through the language of a large acoustic jazz ensemble, the performance establishes a rhythmic and collaborative foundation for the festival.

Featuring lead vocalists Boohle, Stogie T and BONJ, the ensemble is anchored by Boohle’s unmistakable voice – one of the most emotionally resonant in contemporary Amapiano. Her presence provides a vital connective thread between the genre’s electronic origins and its orchestral reinterpretation, grounding the collaboration in authenticity, intimacy and feeling.

The amaBig Band line-up: Kesivan Naidoo (band leader, composer/arranger, drums) Tlale Makane (percussion), Shaun Johannes (electric bass), Joan Codina (Spain/ Switzerland – Double bass), Bokani Dyer (piano), Brathew van Schalkwyk (keyboards), Keenan Ahrends (guitar), Fabio Gouvea (Brazil/Switzerland – guitar), Jon Savage (guitar), Danél Dippenaar (alto sax), Mthunzi Mvubu (alto sax), Charley Rose (France/Switzerland – tenor sax), Jess van der Merwe (tenor sax), Charlotte Lang (Switzerland – baritone), Lukas Wyss (Switzerland – trombone), Hope Hadebe (trombone), Tamzyn Freeks (trombone), Karen Hess (trombone), Lukas Thöni (Switzerland – trumpet), Darren English (trumpet), Lee Thomson (trumpet), Kathleen Racionzer (trumpet), Boohle (vocals), Stogie T (vocals) and BONJ (vocals).

Tracks:

Tribute to Snoop Dog – The Shizzle (2025)

Kesivan Naidoo Big Band Experience: Full Concert Live at the JazzWerkStatt, Bern 2023

Boohle – Shela (2025)

Madala Kunene and Sibusile Xaba – a rare and meaningful collaboration and a meeting of generations that fuses Kunene’s masterful maskandi guitar tradition and Xaba’s exploratory, genre-fluid approach, creating a dialogue that bridges past and present, heritage and innovation.  Known as the ‘King of the Zulu Guitar’, Kunene is revered as the greatest living master of the Zulu guitar tradition. He weaves a tapestry of sound that captures Africa’s heart and the soul of the blues. His awards include an honorary Doctor of Music degree for his work in developing indigenous music; and the Gold Order of Ikhamanga for his contribution to the arts.  

Charismatic guitar savant Sibusile Xaba reframes maskandi and the avant-garde into his own humanist manifesto. His 2017 recording, Open Letter To Adoniah/Unlearning, has garnered acclaim for his voice and guitar stylings, which bring together multiple South African guitar lineages in an original, spiritualised fusion.

Tracks:

Izimpisi
Mqhele 
Wemfana
Izimfijoli 
Sesikhona
Uhebe  

Kwanti Leeh!, an ensemble comprising exceptional artists Herbie Tsoaeli, Andile Yenana, Ayanda Sikade and Sisonke Xonti. Together, they represent a powerful cross-section of South Africa’s contemporary jazz excellence – musicians celebrated for their sensitivity, depth and collective improvisational strength.

Rooted in the legacy of artists such as Bheki Mseleku, Abdullah Ibrahim and Winston Mankunku Ngozi, Kwanti Leeh! reimagines this music with deep respect, creative freedom, and a modern sensibility. Their performances honour history while keeping the music alive – their playlist is forward-looking, and deeply connected to its cultural origins. Between them, this crew of jazz heavyweights have amassed a range of individual awards – this includes Herbie Tsoaeli’s SAMA for Best Jazz Album; Sisonke Xonti’s 2020 Standard Bank Young Artist Award for Jazz; and Andile Yenana’s 2005 Standard Bank Young Artist for Jazz title.

Discography:

Herbie Tsoaeli – African Time (2012), African Time Quartet in Concert (2014), At This Point In Time: Voices In Volumes (2021), Ndiyakudinga (2023)
Ayanda Sikade – Movements (2018), Umakhulu (2021
Sisonke Xonti – uGaba the Migration (2020), Iyonde (2025)
Andile Yenana – We Used To Dance (2002),Who’s Got The Map? (2005), One Night At The Market Theatre (2021)

“Conversations across generations and genres sit at the heart of this programme. It’s the same dialogue that has shaped Montreux for more than 60 years – now expressed through an African voice, on African soil.”  (Lindsay Rhoda, MJFSA Curator: Music & Programming)