It has been over four years since the passing of Jazz legend Hugh Masekela, who passed in January 2018 following his battle with prostate cancer coming to a tragic end. At the time of his passing, Masekela had two children, Selema Masekela and older sister Pula Twala, who are his last surviving descendents.
Given that Selema was born in the United States, Los Angeles to be specific, he is not necessarily a household name in South Africa. But he recently made headline news internationally following the revelation as to who he is dating.
Lupita Nyong'o dating Hugh Masekela's son, Selema
Ahead of Christmas Eve, internationally acclaimed Hollywood A-lister and Oscar winner Lupita Nyong'o and Selema took to Instagram to make it official that they were dating. This is as they shared a video of the two of them changing into various outfits with the caption, “We just click.”
Following the announcement of the two going official, tweeps were quick to suggest a timeline as to when exactly the two started dating. This is as his tweets from 2016 have resurfaced. The tweets in question were of Selema asking his followers for the best pickup lines after being seated behind her on a flight.
Hypothetically speaking of course...let's say you're seated behind Lupita Nyong'o on an airplane, what would be your opening line?
It seems that he did not need them as if the timeline is to be believed, it would mean that the two have kept their relationship private for over four years. But one local ZAlebs that seemed to have known about the relationship is known other than legend in her own right and one of the pioneers of Kwaito, Thandiswa “King Tha” Mazwai.
This comes off the back of Mazwai posting an image, in a since deleted post, of herself with the couple. At the time, locally, the post was cryptic as she captioned it with the caption, “Cat’s out the bag.” As Selema is not a household name, it was a confusing post. But as it has now been contextualised, it makes more sense.
Who is Selema Masekela?
Selema "Sal" Mabena Masekela was born on August 28, 1971, which makes him 51 years old to Nyong’o’s 39 years. He is an American television host, sports commentator, actor and singer. Born to Jazz legend Hugh Masekela and a Haitian mother, Sal’s career began as an intern at Transworld Publications in 1992.
After getting his career started as an intern, Sal would go on to serve as an NBA sideline reporter for ESPN during the 2003-2004 season, becoming the co-host of The Daily 10, which was a “top 10” countdown of the day’s entertainment stories on E! Other hosting credits include being host of both the X Games and Winter X Games on ESPN for 13 years, and appearing as the host and executive producer of VICELAND’s docu-series, VICE World of Sports.
Musically, Sal, inspired by his travels with his father, Hugh Masekela, would also start his own band called Alekesam. The name is one that is an ode to his first film, which is an exploration and documentation of his relationship with his father and their connection through music, which premiered back in 2012 at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2012. Their newest single is titled All Is Forgiven, and features on House of Lies’ season four premiere episode.
