Kazoo King Supports Use Of African Vuvuzela At World Cup

America's kazoo (left) and South Africa's vuvuzela have long been criticized as annoying noisemakers, but kazoo enthusiast Stephen Murray says the instruments bring joy to many.

Wednesday, June 9, 2010 1:08 GMT

The long, buzzing horn traditionally used by South African soccer fans to egg on their favorite teams is getting tons of flack from people who want to ban it from the 2010 World Cup.

But Stephen Murray, president of Kazoobie, Inc. – a company that sells kazoos – doesn’t get what all the huff is about.

As a kazoo enthusiast, he’s experienced plenty of criticism over his choice of noisemaker and thinks South African soccer fans should blow theirs loud and proud at upcoming matches.

Murray considers both kazoos and vuvuzelas “forms of self-expression” that liven up sporting arenas. He thinks anyone who opposes them is simply a “fun-hater.”

But to help legitimize the vuvuzela as more than just an annoying noisemaker, he suggests World Cup soccer fans learn to hum actual melodies on them.

It worked for the kazoo, which Murray says gained more respect as a real instrument after being used by musicians like Jimi Hendrix, Ringo Starr, and rappers Jurassic 5.