Shimza ditches twars, says he would rather fight for love
GIVEN the number of Twitter wars he has got into recently, we would not blame you if you had forgotten that Shimza (real name Ashley Raphala) is an award-winning music producer and DJ.
However, the star, who got into a heated exchange with former DA leader Mmusi Maimane, has just released his Fight To Love EP, which includes remixes by Louie Vega and Floyd Lavine.
With people around the world still coming to grips with the ongoing effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, Shimza teamed up with singer Maleh, who was inspired to write Fight To Love following strict lockdowns.
“I started working on it quite a while back, around May. Then we sent the track to Maleh, who wrote beautiful lyrics and she vibed with the track and did the vocal recording.
“Fighting for Love is always worth the fight, even in the different spheres of life you always have to fight for what you love, and this track is basically explaining fighting for a love that is free, love that can’t be replaced, love you can’t forget, and this is love that people have or wish to have,” said Shimza.
Shimza is globally recognised as one of South Africa’s most celebrated musical exports, breaking out on the world’s electronic circuit with his selfstyled Afrotech sound.
Charting releases via some of the scene’s most authoritative labels, such as Luciano’s Cadenza and Hot Since 82’s Knee Deep In Sound, his uniquely rhythmic strain of underground music has set him on an almost guaranteed path to success.
Speaking on how a single became a six-track remix EP, Shimza said: “We only release EPS on my Kunye label, so we added a second track and our aim at Kunye is always to work with remixers from outside of Africa to connect to a wider audience globally.”
On working with Maleh and Vega, he said: “Maleh is a super-talented singer with a great voice and vocal warmth and depth. Louie Vega and
“I always wanted to work together on a project since he’s been supporting music from Africa for such a long time.
“I look up to Louie Vega, and when we met up, he always imparted knowledge about music, latest projects as well as touring internationally.”
Taking the original to a late-night dimension, Vega seamlessly introduced his inimitable New York house groove, while keeping the original’s essence intact.
“I like and enjoy all of them since they all bring their own style and flavour to the track. I can’t pick a favourite because when I play them on my sets people respond very well to them. I just hope that people can connect with the music and the sound the same way I did while creating this EP,” added Shimza.