Sunday Times

Black Excellence and Black Panther

- Rofhiwa Maneta

Mashayabhu­qe KaMamba

Born Nsikelelo Christian Ndlovu in Durban, Mashayabhu­qe KaMamba is the originator of digital maskandi – a blend of maskandi and traditiona­l Zulu folk music with bass-heavy, autotune-drenched sounds. His influences range from Madala Kunene and Busi Mhlongo to Kanye West and Bon Iver. In 2014, he released The Black Excellence Show, which introduced the world to digital maskandi and featured his breakaway hit Afrikvn Lordz. He has since gone on to work with Thandiswa Mazwai, and performed at Afropunk Paris in 2016. In 2017, he released Nguniversa­l, a five-track EP that continues his mission of bringing digital maskandi to the world.

Sjava

Jabulani Hadebe, better known by his stage name Sjava, is an award-winning singer/songwriter. His debut album, Isina Muva, was released in 2016 and went on to reach gold. In 2017, he was featured on a song called Seasons, which was part of the Black Panther soundtrack. Sjava was also once an actor and had a recurring role as Zonke on SABC 1’s Zone 14. He describes his sound as African trap music — a blend of scathamiya, maskandi, kwaito and trap music.

A$AP Shembe

A$AP Shembe is a music producer and artist from Vosloorus. His debut EP, Inkinga, was released in 2015 and explores traditiona­l African spirituali­ty as well as 808-laden trap music. He says his music is a marriage of the worlds he inhabits. To date, he’s released two full-length projects: Butter and Inkinga. His most recent single, Sifile, is about death and seeking comfort from a higher power.

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