Since all eyes are locked in at South Africa nowadays, we wanted to present some of the great club-music South Africa ( and Africa in general) has to offer at the moment!
DJ Zhao has compiled an incredible mixtape of African and African-inspired dance music called “Ukulwa”. ““Ukulwa” translates to “war” in Zulu, and rather than divorcing diverse sounds such as kwaito and kuduro from their political context, he weaves the tape together with samples of people praising Mandela and giving empowering paeans to freedom, ensuring that even as we dance, we remember what we’re celebrating. In Zhao’s own words: “South Africa is surely rising as a proud modern nation, even as we rejoice in these blissful rhythms, we must remember this war, and both continue, and continue to be inspired by, this struggle against domination, against injustice.””
Also throwing in a mix featuring more South African Kwaito music, by Moroka (the newest member of The Secousse Sound System from London). This mix contains older and newer Kwaito and it’s a good one! (Perfect soundtrack for the World Cup)
The netbased label Akwaaba Music is known for signing talented, African musicians and giving the whole world the chance to hear it. They recently released a kuduro compilation-album featuring tracks from artists from the Angolian capitol, Luanda. Some of the artists featured on the album are known Kuduro-artists like Zoca Zoca, Noite e Día and Os Mais Potentes.
Here’s a minimix from the album, featuring bangers from Vagabanda, Puto Prata, Fofando and Saborosa and Zoca Zoca!
Mad Decent just posted Radioclit’s hot “Fu Na Na Na mix” which mainly features a music-genre called Funana. “Funaná is a music and dance genre from Cape Verde. Funaná is an accordion-based music. It is perhaps the most upbeat form of Cape Verdean music and bears a resemblance to American zydeco, while being less blues-based and maintaining a closer connection with West African music. The rhythm is usually provided by the ferrinho much like the use of washboards in zydeco, the saw in Caribbean ripsaw music, the scraper in Sub-Saharan African music and the güiro in Latin and Pre-Colombian music.”
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In this picture: Esau Mwamwaya and Radioclit