RIP Daniel Dumile: Remembering MF DOOM
The hip hop community stepped into the new year on a sombre note. On December 31st, 2020, just as the clock struck midnight – South African Standard Time, our collective Twitter timelines were inundated with news that broke a few minutes prior – MF DOOM had passed. It would later become apparent that MF DOOM […]
The Plug Lists our 25 Best Projects of 2020
This year has been characterized by chaos, destruction and regretfully, insurmountable loss. It was, however, a period where music carried us and kept us afloat, offering much-needed solace and escapism. Despite the lack of live shows, concerts and all-round interactive music events, most of us still managed to get lost in the magic of music […]
I’m not falling for the same old December memetry and Amapiano tricks
In the movie Falling Down (1993), Bill Foster (played by Michael Douglas) attempts to order breakfast in a fast-food restaurant at exactly 11:33 — the restaurant had just shifted to the lunch menu three minutes ago. “We stop serving breakfast at 11:30” the manager replied, Foster whipped out his Uzi and further persuaded both the teller and […]
Elements: TOBi’s Pocket Of Peace In The Tumult of 2020
When getting into an album, the first track is what sets the tone, elicits the sentiment out of listeners, and draws you into the imagination of the artist. TOBi’s Elements (Vol. 1) does exactly this with “Dollas and Cents” featuring Juls. Is it rap? Undeniably. Is it hip-hop? No doubt. But is it more? Unequivocally. […]
Molley And The Mountain: The Making Of An Album
Nobody expects a viral moment, it sort of just happens. Think back to Nicki Minaj’s Queen Radio episode that gave us the viral quote “TO FREEDOM”. Or more locally, recall J Molley’s first single on Soundcloud amassing over 10,000 streams in its first month. That was a viral moment that changed the rest of J […]
Nsikayesizwe: Nasty C
Nasty C’s new album opens with the line “This is how it feel like to be on top of the world.” His rise to the top of South Africa’s hip hop fraternity has been nothing short of a marvel to witness. Beyond the country’s borders, he has his eyes set on global domination. Beginning his […]
Opinion: Focalistic is a contender for 2020 MVP
This year has been one of the hardest to hit the entertainment industry in a while. Due to the national lockdown, some parts of the entertainment industry have been at a complete standstill. Many artists had to go without any income from performances and many hosted their own virtual shows as a result. Some were […]
Hopemasta, From Behind the Scenes to Centre Stage
When Morpheus gave Neo the choice between the red and blue pill, we all understood that one choice had the likelihood of being severely underwhelming. But what if you had the choice to find your passion between two rooms? One being a homemade studio, and the other a mini-museum of South African pop and hip-hop […]
God and His Good Grace in the Making of Manu WorldStar’s MOLIMO
God’s grace is said to know no bounds. His voice is best found in the silence, the quiet. More importantly, he is said to live in the heart and mind, the trees and the sky; but specifically for Manu WorldStar, God has opened up the heavens to bless him with his favor… or at least, […]
Nadia Nakai. The awakening of SA’s rap queen
In many art forms, the pursuit of legendary status is the North Star guiding the trajectory of the artist’s career. James Baldwin spoke about an aspect of this in his collection of essays, Nobody Knows My Name. Exploring various themes over the six years that it was written, he also spoke of integrity as an […]
AKA’s “Energy” uses the “Summer Daze” sample to deliver a message
An element of hip hop production that goes back as far as the growth of the genre itself, sampling is fundamental to hip hop. In April last year, AKA filmed his episode of MTV Base’s Yo! MTV Raps where he spoke the use of sampling in his catalogue. Where our most prominent memories of hip […]
What Business Can Learn From Amapiano
Other than Siya Kolisi, amapiano was arguably the biggest thing to come out of South Africa in 2019. The name, amapiano, can be directly translated to “pianos” and is a genre of music that has taken the country and various places in the continent by storm. My first introduction to the sub-genre was when my […]