This Day in History: 3 November 1964
Brenda Nokuzola Fassie, South African Pop Queen, was born in 1964 in Langa, a township near Cape Town. She was named after the American country singer Brenda Lee. The daughter of a pianist, Brenda began singing to her mother's accompaniment at a very young age, and at the age of five, she had tourists paying to hear her sing. Brenda Fassie died on 9 May 2004 after allegedly taking a drug overdose. She is survived by her son Bongani Fassie.