Singer from South Africa's townships signs opera deal Ms Matshikiza, who currently performs with the Stuttgart Opera, grew up in rented shacks of corrugated iron as her family moved between townships around Cape Town. Her mother sang in church choirs but she discovered her vocation when she stumbled across a classical music radio station. Ms Matshikiza said: "My debut album tells the story of my incredible journey from Africa to Europe and I feel privileged to be able to chart it through the very personal repertoire choices on this album; songs and arias that prove music unites people across the world and brings cultures together." The album will include traditional African songs in her mother tongue, Xhosa, alongside arias and a new arrangement of the South African hit The Lion Sleeps Tonight. Ms Matshikiza will dedicate her recording of Invictus to Mr Mandela, when the album comes out later this year. The poem, which ends with the lines: "I am the master of my fate/ I am the captain of my soul" was recited to other prisoners by Mr Mandela. Paul Mealor, the composer whose work was chosen for the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, has written the poem's musical setting.