When Hugh Masekela was growing up in South Africa, that country was under the apartheid system of rule. This meant that black children could not be in the same school or play with white children.

Even adults who were black could only do certain kinds of jobs, live in certain areas and faced daily harassment by the police.

Growing up under such an uncomfortable environment, Masekela found an escape in music. He played the gramophone and would follow street bands at weekends. His love for music stayed with him even in school.

In high school, he began to lose interest in education and according to him, he couldn't hear anything else in class except music.

"I could not hear the teacher. I mean I could see his mouth moving but when he asked me a question, I couldn't answer because I was singing in my head." That interest in music has been worthwhile. Today, that young boy is one of the world's renowned musicians.

Sixty-eight-year-old Masekela has covered the globe and played with about every top star one could think of — Miriam Makeba, Nigerian Fela Anikulapo Kuti, Zimbabwean Dorothy Masuka, Ghana's Hedzoleh Soundz and Dudu Pukwana, among others.

Masekela was in the country recently to perform at the Ghana Music Awards when the Junior Graphic contacted him to share his childhood story with Ghanaian children.

He was born in a coal mining town in South Africa called Witbank, about 100 miles east of Johannesburg, the capital of South Africa. Before age six he lived with his grandmother who brewed a local beer called "jodan beer".

At that time in South Africa, it was illegal for Africans to drink so selling alcohol in black communities became illegal. They, therefore, had to look out for the police when selling the drink.

Masekela described himself as a naughty, restless and busy person when he was a child. "I got punished for hurting other people and fighting but I was also a good footballer," he said.

Young Masekela started school at the age of six while he was living with his parents. In school, he was so brilliant that by the time he turned 11 years he was in high school. "I was always in the top five in my class until I lost interest in education."

When Masekela was 13 years old he received a trumpet from Father Trevor Huddleston, an anti-apatheid activist, after being inspired by the film, "Young Man With a Horn". After receiving trumpet lessons, he started playing music.

Soon some of his music-loving schoolmates also became interested in playing other instruments so they formed a band at St Peter's Secondary School, where the anti-apatheid priest was the chaplain.

St Peter's Secondary School has produced many of South Africa's great leaders, especially political leaders like Oliver Tambo, after whom the international airport in South Africa is named.

In 1955 when African schools in the country were closed down, many members of the band went their separate ways but five of them who were interested in music remained and kept the band going.

Father Huddleston was also deported from South Africa within the same year and settled in England. With his help the band had a trumpet from Louis Armstrong who had heard a lot about them.

After receiving that trumpet, they started hitting the headlines and other musicians who heard of them came over to perform with them.

In 1960, Masekela left South Africa for England with the help of Father Huddleston. At this time, Miriam Makeba, his childhood friend, who was already enjoying major successes in the USA also helped him to get a scholarship to study in the US.

In America, he studied at Guildhall School of Music and began recording his music and since then it has been a success story, he said.

Masekela has many hits including the 1987 "Bring Back Nelson Mandela", which became the anthem for Mandela's world tour following his release from prison in 1992. His music normally touches on the conditions of blacks.

Hugh Masekela has five children and advises children to find out where their passion lies in order to develop it. He also asked them to stay away from anything that will land them in trouble.