DJ Maphorisa and the thrill of spinning
Roaring BMWS, music and fashion collide on the streets of Eldorado Park
THEMBA SONNYBOY SEKOWE, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS DJ
MAPHORISA, is known in South Africa as the producer with the Midas touch because he turns every track, album or collab he touches to gold. But that didn’t land in his lap.
He’s the epitome of the famous saying, ‘the harder I work, the luckier I get’.
The man puts in the hours. When DJ Maphorisa was young, his mother ran a ministry, so he grew up around gospel music. He also knew how to plug in a PA system and what an amplifier was, and he was always around musical instruments. It was as if his career path was predetermined.
Kicking off his career as a local DJ in his teens was challenging because he needed money. ‘I’d deejay at the weekend, opened a tuck shop at home, and sold sweets and lollipops at school,’ DJ Maphorisa recalled of his early days in a 2018 interview with the Sunday Times.
He signed as a producer to Kalawa Jazmee Records in 2010, but his big break came in 2016 when he coproduced the rap star Drake’s megahit ‘One Dance’.
The single was number one in 15 countries, including France, Germany and Australia, and topped Billboard’s The Hot 100 Chart for an incredible 10 weeks non-consecutively. It also became the third-longest consecutive number one song in the history of the UK Singles Chart. (It tied with Wet Wet Wet’s ‘Love Is All Around’ – remember that?)
The song helped launch DJ Maphorisa’s career, and he’s since received production credits from local and international artists such as Wizkid, Kwesta, Uhuru, Black Coffee, Major Lazer, Runtown, C4 Pedro, Kabza De Small and Era Istrefi, as well as Drake.
One of his interests is cars, of which he owns a couple, including a BMW 325i, otherwise known as a Gusheshe, or two. It was his interest in cars and his collection that led to his fascination with spinning.
We caught up with DJ Maphorisa to chat about spinning, the Queen of Smoke and more.
GQ: You have several cars in your collection. Which one’s your favourite?
DJ Maphorisa: My blue E30 325i with a conversion of the M5 motor S38.
GQ: How did you get into spinning, and why’s it cool? DJM: When I was growing up, I’d see people spinning in my hometown. It’s a Kasi thing; it looks and feels super-cool to take part.
‘Spinning is a Kasi thing; it looks and feels super-cool to take part’
GQ: Who are your spinning friends?
DJM: I hang with Ziko, Katra, Jason Webb, Sam Sam and Bareng.
GQ: What’s the connection between spinning and music? DJM: It’s pretty uid, and it evolves every year. e thing is, speed and sound go hand in hand. ey complement each other because of the atmosphere they create.
GQ: Is there a particular music culture attached to spinning, and how has it evolved?
DJM: It all comes down to personal taste. It’s whatever makes a person spinning a car feel good and con dent.
GQ: Is there a fashion scene intrinsic to spinning?
DJM: At a spinning event, you’ll mostly see [people wearing] black because oil doesn’t show on dark colours.
GQ: What labels are associated with spinning?
DJM: People wear Converse All Stars and Jack Purcells or Dickies because they’re at. But it isn’t really about clothing and labels. ey aren’t a focal point when it comes to spinning; it’s all about the cars.
GQ: What’s your take on Stacey-lee May? [The legendary spinning machine is one of South Africa’s motoring sweethearts. The 24-year-old, known in Eldorado Park as the ‘Queen of Smoke’, has been spinning from a young age.] DJM: Stacey-lee’s amazing, incredibly talented and super-dope, and it was great to have spinning experiences with her recently! We had a lot of fun. We got to play around with our cars, and learn di erent techniques from each other, which was great. She’s really cool.