Whether they hail him as the crooner, the actor or the equality activist, many arts and entertainment personalities paid tribute on Tuesday to the legendary Harry Belafonte, who died in New York at the age of 96. .
He was “one of the greatest singers in the United States. He was very handsome, with great class, a very nice relaxed look, crazy charisma and a magnificent voice,” Line Renaud told AFP, remembering with emotion the time, in the early 1970s, when she had hired Harry Belafonte when she was a show programmer in Las Vegas.
Another artist to have worked closely with the late singer, during tours of the United States and Canada in 1964 and 1965, Nana Mouskouri spoke of a “magnificent singer, a great interpreter, a great master of the stage and a great teacher “. The crooner bathed in Caribbean influences, a great civil rights activist, “inspired humanity, love and justice” estimated the polyglot Greek singer.
Franco-Beninese musician Angélique Kidjo paid tribute to “the brightest of stars”. “Your passion, your love, your knowledge and your respect for Africa were limitless and unequalled,” she said.
Another singer born in Africa – him in Burundi – Gaël Faye, who had collaborated on one of his albums with Harry Belafonte, remembered the commitment of the latter: “He was an artist, but much more than that. He met Martin Luther King: we do not realize how important he had a role in the civil rights movement.
For rapper Ice Cube, Harry Belafonte “was more than a singer, more than an actor and more than a man”. Director Spike Lee, for his part, regretted the loss of a “giant”.
Even the UN joined in the chorus of praise, through the voice of Secretary General Antonio Guterres’ spokesperson. Harry Belafonte “was a courageous civil rights activist and a strong voice in the fight against apartheid, the fight against AIDS and efforts to eradicate poverty”, listed Stéphane Dujarric.
The praise also came from the political sphere and even from the sports world. “He put his fame and his fortune at the service of the public good”, underlined the American president Joe Biden. “His fervent pleas, compassion and respect for human dignity will live on.”
“Singer, actor, activist, philanthropist, great character and more, Harry Belafonte paved the way for so many black artists in the entertainment business,” reacted American basketball legend Magic Johnson.
