Isaac Zacks Nkosi (1919–1978) was a South African jazz and Mbaqanga alto saxophonist, composer, and producer from Alexandra. He initially played piano, organ, and accordion before adopting the saxophone at age 15. Nkosi performed with the Havana Group and the Blue Diamond Jazz Band. In 1940, he joined Solomon Zuluboy Cele's Jazz Maniacs, followed by King Force Silgee’s Jazz Forces and Ellison Temba’s African Swingsters. Nkosi recorded the single “Swazi Stomp” in 1952. He led the Nkosi Sextet and the City Jazz Nine, with whom he recorded between 1956 and 1964, releasing the album Our Kind of Jazz in 1964. A producer for EMI, Nkosi recorded two albums in 1975 with Barney Rachabane and Sipho Gumede. He received the Siyabakhumbula Prize and was inducted into the Pioneering Spirits Walk of Fame. His son, Jabu Nkosi, also became a jazz musician.
