Long before earning international acclaim with a featured role on Paul Simon's Grammy-winning "Graceland" album, and long before its groundbreaking U.S. debut in 1987, Ladysmith Black Mambazo was a distinctive South African singing group on a mission.

An impoverished South African singing group on a mission.

"It was a struggle. It was very difficult," recalled Albert Mazibuko, one of the group's original members. "There were seven of us (staying) in one room because we wanted to share everything.

"We didn't even feel we were not living well because what we were doing was comforting us and making us happy all the time. Sometimes we maybe didn't even have enough to eat, but we didn't mind because we had the music ... We wanted to do this thing, because we felt we had a mission."

Now, the 10-member group led by Joseph Shabalala, a Zulu native and former factory worker who developed the choir's unique sound by blending Christian and Zulu musical traditions, is "making a very good living," conceded Mazibuko, 55, who's married and has six children.

The in-demand group that tours the globe regularly, with frequent visits to the United States, has earned several Grammy nominations of its own, has performed for presidents, the Queen of England and the pope in Rome and has just released its latest CD, "Raise Your Spirit Higher," adding to an impressive inventory of 40-plus Ladysmith Black Mambazo recordings.

But three decades after its humble beginnings, the group's mission remains the same: To bring a "message of hope and unity to a troubled world," according to the Heads Up International record label that released the new album.

"Our music helps us and many people, especially those that have been exiled fighting for freedom," Mazibuko said in a recent telephone interview from Las Vegas, where the group prepared to launch its latest U.S. tour.

"They say our music gives them hope and they're calm in spirit and they're able to see things clearly. It's the only thing the world can depend on is to calm down and see things in a clear vision and try to resolve things in a peaceful manner instead of fighting."

Group members themselves desperately needed their music's calming influence at the time they recorded new material for "Raise Your Spirit Higher." They were mourning the death of Shabalala's wife, Nellie, murdered in 2002 by a masked gunman outside their church.

"This album came about when we were very sad," Mazibuko said. "Every one of us, we were down and so confused, but when we sang we started to feel good about the music; this was a powerful thing that could help."

So, despite the tragedy, the new album brims with hopeful, spiritual songs, including the title track, "Lord is the Light and Truth" and "Because I Love." Mazibuko said the group will perform tracks from its new album when it plays Calvin College on Thursday, along with tunes "from an earlier time."

Shabalala, who sings lead in the group that also features seven bass voices, an alto and a tenor, has said his conversion to Christianity in the 1960s helped forge Ladysmith Black Mambazo's musical direction, to "bring this gospel of loving one another all over the world" while retaining strong elements of traditional South African music.

Although the group has since recorded with many popular artists, including Stevie Wonder, Dolly Parton, George Clinton and Ben Harper, Simon's decision to feature Ladysmith Black Mambazo on his 1986 "Graceland" album propelled the singers to worldwide fame.

Mazibuko said the group intends to keep using its esteemed gifts to spread the word of hope, to spark a "revival" of spirituality and unity.

"We like to share this with people," he said. "They can work together as a family because Mambazo is like a family ... You can accomplish so much without fighting."