SOMETHING MORE
IF YOU CAN DREAM IT, YOU CAN DO IT: DONALD DELIVERS AFRICA’S FIRST-EVER VISUAL ALBUM
Working with Tiwa Savage was a dream come true for me. I’ve always wanted to work with her and when we finally got into studio together to record this song and then shoot the video, it was magical. Donald Moatshe Mzansi’s singer, songwriter, and recording artist
He recorded and shot back-to-back videos for each of the 10 tracks.
Credit is overdue for Mzansi singer, songwriter and recording artist Donald Moatshe. Positioning his brand so he is recognised as a game-changer is a task the artist has been working tirelessly towards and has now attained. If he is not filling up Carnival City’s Big Top Arena while recording his first-ever Red Mic Xperience (RMX) live DVD, he is releasing Africa’s first-ever visual album, Something More.
“I think a lot about my career, what I have done and what I would still like to do.
“With this visual album, I felt I needed a little more of a challenge because I tend to get the best out of myself when working under pressure, so I wanted to do something a little harder, and financially, it was challenging to achieve this,” he said, indicating that getting sponsors was a mission, especially because the project was top secret.
“It was an ideal time in my career to embark on something of this sort.
“I feel a sense of satisfaction doing things not many do. I want my brand to be recognised as a game-changer,” he added.
The multi-award winning artist started working on the visual album in April last year, pointing out that he was working on the Red Mic Xperience and the album concurrently.
“The important thing for me was to inspire young people to think highly of themselves and know that if you dream it you can do it.
“I furthermore wanted to inspire myself. The album allowed me to learn a bit about Donald.”
Don- ald says though working on the album had its demanding moments, getting it out for his fans to view and listen to is one of his biggest achievements so far.
“I started working on the first video for this album after recording the RMX DVD. It took a while because I wanted to ensure that it was perfect and the story made sense.”
To deliver yet another chart-topping hit, the multi-platinum selling artist’s lead single Rain Drops from his album sees him teamed up with superstar Tiwa Savage on both the song and video.
“Working with Tiwa was a dream come true for me. I’ve always wanted to work with her and when we finally got into the studio together to record this song and then shoot the video, it was magical.
“Tiwa is such a professional, she oozes talent effortlessly and I’m really honoured to have her on the visual album. We had a lot of fun shooting the music video, one of the best videos of my career,” Donald said, adding that they both showed each other a great deal of respect and the song has already created a lot of noise in Nigeria.
“Rain Drops speaks about the kind of loneliness that comes with taking the person that loves you for granted and losing them. Those days when it’s raining and you wish you had that someone by your side,” he explained. He has also worked with Floda from Durban and Saso from hip hop trio Dreamteam. He added that Mzansi should look out for Floda as she is bound to make it big in the industry.
“The visuals are also star-studded with cameos by Masechaba Ndlovu, Bontle Modiselle, Abdul Khoza and Didie Makobane. All 10 videos were directed and shot by Pilot Films.”
The singer says he is really proud of how far he has come in his career and is ecstatic about the reception his new album has received.
“People are trying to understand this concept of a visual album, but nonetheless remain extremely positive and loving the music. This tells me that this is a strong album.”
The two songs that stand out for him in the album are Standing Ovation and Landela, the latter being his first ever afro-soul track.
“My relationship with music is probably my most important affiliation. Music keeps me alive. I don’t see myself living without it,” he concluded.