Not forgetting the OGs – Black Coffee, DJ Maphorisa and DJ Kent – these amapiano artists are making waves on our TikTok, YouTube and Spotify feeds these days.
Amapiano is synonymous with South African culture and this home brewed genre has now taken the rest of the world by storm. We take a look at the artists who drive us crazy on the dance floor with their bops.
Lady Du
Possibly one of the most played and streamed amapiano artists in the country, Lady Du recently toured Africa and visited some European countries too.
One of the biggest injustices to mankind, however, is that she wasn’t nominated — or even invited — to this year’s SAMAs. Her song Woza sits at 10M YouTube streams, and she has collabed with the likes of many cool new amapiano artists like 9umba, Mr JazziQ and DBN Gogo.
Master KG
Remember that time we were all doing the ‘Jerusalema’ when lockdown first hit? Wait, or are people still doing that? This trendsetter has recently celebrated his song Sofa Silahlane hitting 10M reams in just over 1 month after its release.
Even that has been making its rounds on TikTok, with tons of people giving their best moves to the song’s beat.
Costa Titch
Starting out in the entertainment industry as a dancer, Constantinos Tsobanoglou morphed into the talented rapper and musician he is now. He’s been compared to Focalistic, another great rapper, but he takes that as motivation to be even more unique.
Big Flexa, one of his biggest hits, currently sits on 26M YouTube streams, and features the likes of C’buda M and Man T.
Busta 929
If Busta 929 was to be found in a ‘find the hidden objects’ puzzle, he’d stand out like a sore thumb. He’s taken off as the producer of hits like Paradise, Mmpula and Gqoz Gqoz.
His latest project, Strictly 929_Vol_11, is an hour long amapiano mix that has an accompanying visualiser of him hanging with his friends and scratching those disks that create musical magic.
Young Stunna
As Ballantine’s website suggests: “Watching Young Stunna perform is an exercise in tension and release”. The young vocalist, who used to be a rapper, was clearly made for the stage.
This didn’t go unnoticed because in 2021, the 21-year-old was introduced to Kabza De Small and DJ Maphorisa, 2 of the most influential amapiano artists. His recent collaboration with K.O, Sete, amassed over 1M YouTube views only a few days after its release.
Nkosazana Daughter
One of the most sought-after amapiano vocalists, Nkosazana (yup, that’s her real name too) has collabed with several amapiano artists including Master KG, Tyler ICU, Kabza De Small and DJ Maphorisa.
She popped out of the snow, much like a daisy, and has just continued to become increasingly popular, lending her soothing voice to some of the catchiest tracks.
TXC
This dynamic duo, Tarryn Reid and Clairise Hefke, are trekking the globe — from Portugal to Germany — but they’re both as grounded as ever. Just a few years into their careers, they only feature in sold-out shows and produce only the freshest rhythms.
This is no easy feat, given that they started their journey during the peak of the pandemic. They’ve done collabs with artists like TNK MusiQ and Daliwonga, but they truly shine in front of a live crowd.
9UMBA
9umba is part of the new generation of artists building the amapiano sound. He’s multi-instrumental: saxophone, piano, Djembe drums and marimba to be exact.
This self-taught producer and DJ has worked hard to get his name in the same line as DJ Maphorisa and Kabza De Small. You may have swayed those hips to uMlando, which has over 10M YouTube streams.
Boohle
If you haven’t yet heard of Boohle, take notes, because this girl is everywhere! Her vocals are making people dance with her songs Wamuhle, Mama and Inyembezi. She collabed with Cassper Nyovest on the song Siyathandana (which she also wrote) back in 2021.
More recently, she’s been making her own tracks with fellow artists like Gaba Cannal and Ntokzin, and has had performances on the latest season of Idols SA. This trailblazer also uploads live performances of her vocals — slay!
Also read: 5 Gen-Z Approved Hotspots Around SA
Words by Saadiqah Schroeder
Photography: Courtesy Images
