Langalakhe Mabena
GOSPEL musician Canaan Nyathi has raised the bar with a spectacular live recording that combined worship, cultural diversity and thanksgiving, turning his 40th birthday celebrations into an altar of praise.
Titled “God and a New Song,” the 20-track project was recorded on October 3 at Carnival City’s Big Top Arena in Johannesburg, South Africa, drawing thousands of people from different walks of life under the theme, “Building an Altar for Jesus”.
The recording marked Nyathi’s third live DVD project and a significant milestone in his musical journey, as he celebrated four decades of life by giving glory to God for carrying him this far.
Anchored on themes of gratitude, faith, salvation, divine favour and the sovereignty of God, the project seeks to remind believers of the importance of honouring the Almighty while celebrating the power of Gospel music to unite people across cultural and linguistic boundaries.
Although the event was designed as a one-man show, Nyathi made room for fellow Gospel ministers and emerging talent, including his brother in ministry, Everton Mlalazi.
“This was an entirely one-man show, but because I have people whom I always work with, I had to accommodate them. Minister Everton Mlalazi performed at the event.
“I also gave a chance to young and promising Gospel artistes, a young lady called Tabiso, as well as Musawenkosi. I did this to uplift and allow them to realise their dreams,” said Nyathi.
The Baba Ziveze hitmaker described the project as the finest of his career so far, saying every aspect of the production was carefully executed to match the magnitude of the occasion.
He said he sought God’s approval before embarking on what he described as a multimillion-dollar undertaking, insisting that his faith, rather than the cost, guided his decision in curating the event.
“One thing that I know about God is that He blesses me abundantly and, when it came to this project, I didn’t look at how much I was going to spend to make the event a success. I prayed about this live recording and God gave me a signal to do it. I had to honour that,” he said.
“This is the best project I have ever done. Everything was excellently done, from the choreography and stage design to the lighting. This was also my way of giving praise to the Almighty as I hosted the event as part of my birthday celebrations.
“The inspiration behind the stage was to build an altar, and for this show, I had to build an altar equivalent to how God is blessing me. Hence, the reason I had no problems spending millions for this dream to come true,” said Nyathi.
Beyond the elaborate staging, God and a New Song carries a message of unity, with Nyathi deliberately incorporating different languages to reach a broad audience and demonstrate the universality of the Christian faith.
The musician said the project features songs in English, isiZulu, isiNdebele, Shona and Setswana, allowing people from different cultural backgrounds to find a place in the worship experience.
“God is for all of us. We might pray to Him in different ways, but He is for us all. In the production of this recording, I did songs in different languages, including English, Zulu, Ndebele, Shona, as well as Tswana. The intention was to show the power of God and that He is the Saviour for every nation,” he said.
The recording also incorporated choreography inspired by traditional Setswana and Zulu dances, while medleys drawn from different church traditions were included to encourage unity among Christians.
