The Rules of South African Hip Hop in 2014
South African hip-hop has become too safe. Cutting edge rappers are being sidelined in favour of tried-and-tested
64 Articles by:
Ts'eliso Monaheng
Ts'eliso Monaheng is a writer and photographer based in Johannesburg, South Africa.
The State Of African Hip Hop
Hip-hop in Africa is diverse—no single sound defines it. Electro-chaabi, mbalax-influenced rap, and house-sampling styles all reflect the continent’s broad musical scope.
South African Hip Hop–An Outsider’s Perspective
One evening while channel surfing at home, I stumbled upon what sounded like a rap cypher*
The World Of Ridiculous Internet Videos: Who is Kwality?
I wasn’t sure of how to react when I opened the Youtube link to Kwality’s “Official Lion King.”
Kickin’ It With Christian Tiger School
I arrive in Braamfontein twenty minutes early, at 6pm, for a meeting with Sebastiano Zenasi (or
The perfect wall to paint
The illustrators Fuzzy Slipperz and Skubalisto and the photographer Mooki Mooks on being an artist in present-day South Africa.
Why Is No One Else Talking About These Musicians?
I got the chance to be part of the Redbull Basscamp in Johannesburg during October 2013.
Rap Battle of the Week on Reddit: Johannesburg’s Tumi vs Atlanta’s Ness Lee
Two weeks ago, Club Zen in downtown Johannesburg got packed to its rafters with hip-hop afficionados
#Photojournal: Back To The City Festival
Back To The City is a hip-hop and street fashion festival held in Johannesburg's Newtown Precinct
Tumi Molekane’s New Song
With no Volume to his name, it seemed almost impossible to imagine South Africa-based self-proclaimed poet/emcee
Notes from the Native Yards
Cape Town hip hop duo, Ill Skillz’s music documents their musical joy-ride through the good, the bad, and the nostalgic.
Lesotho’s Politics Go Pop
Lesotho's Prime Minister and leader of the coalition government Tom Thabane has found love: ‘It is one of the best decisions that I ever made in my entire life,’ the statesman said in a recent newspaper interview (in Sotho). The circumstances in which the news was revealed, was less rosy: a bomb explosion and unidentified gunmen shooting at his lover's house.
Meet Bittereinder
I discovered the three piece Afrikaans outfit Bittereinder through the internet and fell in love with them because of their live performance. Their music, a bass-heavy flurry of high-energy drops and subdued melodies, develops a different personality on stage, often in stark contrast to the studio recordings. Bleeps become filtered echoes; drum patterns change, or disappear completely. Bittereinder is Afrikaans for 'bitter ender'.
Our Favorite Album of 2013
I’ve had Shane Cooper's "Oscillations" in my possession for the past four months. From the onset, it
An interview with Ghanaian artist Sarkodie in the lead-up to his new album
Few rappers on the continent have been as prolific as Sarkodie this year. The Ghanaian emcee
The people need a new myth
The Brother Moves On is not anti-ANC. Their new music rather speaks to the ideals of the liberation movement and asks if this is what we fought for.