Durban musicians have been breathing life into the kwaito style called, unsurprisingly, Durban Kwaito Music or DKM. Durban based producer, Zakhele Madida combined forces with an ambitious young man, Thokozani Ndlovu, better known as L’vovo Derrango to give new life to kwaito. Not only did Madida and L’vovo break new ground, artists such as T’zozo and Professor have pushed the same envelope and introduced another artist from Durbs by the name of Character following in the trend setters’ foot steps.
Kwaito music has been around for many years and has been for a long time associated with South Africa’s youth culture. Artists such as Boom Shaka, Bongo Maffin, TKZee, M’du Masilela, Joe Nina and Arthur Mafokate have contributed so much to the genre, and now a new breed has taken kwaito a step further. Judging from the hype surrounding his name, L’vovo Derrango is making a name for the new sound of kwaito and has been enjoying radio airplay and countless live performances.
Taking a look at the artist’s music, L’vovo and his production team have done quite a lot to grab people’s attention. Only with his first release, the artist managed to secure a space for his name in the music industry and since then the brother has been rocking left, right and center with his stylish kwaito hits such as ‘Mayang’sukela’ and ‘Resista’ which have both dominated the airwaves heavily.
L’vovo’s producer, Zakhele Madida, said DKM is a mixture of house beats blended with kwaito lyrics – which is something that has never been offered to the kwaito fanatics in the past. “I put together a house song with pertaining lyrics, positioned them satisfactorily and also harmonized the chorus but still gave the song the kwaito feel,” he said.
For Madida, the reason for introducing this new trend was to expand kwaito as a genre and open new opportunities for up and coming artists. Madida said the DKM sound is an opportunity that will eventually unlock doors for many artists. “Our sound is simply house instrumentals mixed with pertinent lyrics that have sing-along hooks.”
According to Madida, the other reason for bringing DKM into the limelight was to come up with a sound that even an ordinary DJ would be able to mix into their set. “The problem with kwaito is that the tempo is a bit slow from that of house and it becomes difficult for DJs to mix such songs with what they are playing. DKM fills the gap, offering DJs a kwaito sound that they can easily mix with a house song,” concluded Madida.
For Black Coffee, DKM can be identified by the house music influences and strong kwaito style lyrics. According to the gifted producer, DKM uses a tempo that is normally used for house music. “DKM tempos go even above 125 beat per minute, which is too fast for kwaito,” he said. According to Black Coffee, although DKM lyrics are kwaito based they are also different in that artist don’t say the same verses or statements over and over. “DKM has revolutionised the kwaito scene, it has forced other artists to start writing lyrics that make sense and that are not repetitive.” Lastly, when it comes to the demand of this style, he said people in clubs and radios always ask for DKM songs, being “the in sound at the moment,” he concluded.
From the words of the man himself, L’vovo Derrango said whenever he does a song; he blends real life into his compositions. “In my music, I make sure that there are certain issues that I talk about so that it can be a lot easier for people to relate to what I am singing about,” he said.
When asked what differentiates his music from the rest, he replied; “My songs have a sing-along feel. If you hear me singing for the first time, the second time you see me on stage, you will sing along with me because my lyrics are catchy and easy to relate to”. It is true that DKM has hit the industry hard and is making most producers and artists’ panel-beat their sound accordingly.
With the response that L’vovo received for his 2006 release ‘Derrango’, it is clear that people want a change and have been longing for a different sound. But wait… Not only did L’vovo introduce a new sound, he has also come up with a dance to go along with his compositions called the “Derrango”. It has become clear that whenever the artist is on stage, people anticipate seeing the “Derrango” movement, dancing along and waiting for the man himself to do his magic.
Kwaito music has been around for many years and has been for a long time associated with South Africa’s youth culture. Artists such as Boom Shaka, Bongo Maffin, TKZee, M’du Masilela, Joe Nina and Arthur Mafokate have contributed so much to the genre, and now a new breed has taken kwaito a step further. Judging from the hype surrounding his name, L’vovo Derrango is making a name for the new sound of kwaito and has been enjoying radio airplay and countless live performances.
Taking a look at the artist’s music, L’vovo and his production team have done quite a lot to grab people’s attention. Only with his first release, the artist managed to secure a space for his name in the music industry and since then the brother has been rocking left, right and center with his stylish kwaito hits such as ‘Mayang’sukela’ and ‘Resista’ which have both dominated the airwaves heavily.
L’vovo’s producer, Zakhele Madida, said DKM is a mixture of house beats blended with kwaito lyrics – which is something that has never been offered to the kwaito fanatics in the past. “I put together a house song with pertaining lyrics, positioned them satisfactorily and also harmonized the chorus but still gave the song the kwaito feel,” he said.
For Madida, the reason for introducing this new trend was to expand kwaito as a genre and open new opportunities for up and coming artists. Madida said the DKM sound is an opportunity that will eventually unlock doors for many artists. “Our sound is simply house instrumentals mixed with pertinent lyrics that have sing-along hooks.”
According to Madida, the other reason for bringing DKM into the limelight was to come up with a sound that even an ordinary DJ would be able to mix into their set. “The problem with kwaito is that the tempo is a bit slow from that of house and it becomes difficult for DJs to mix such songs with what they are playing. DKM fills the gap, offering DJs a kwaito sound that they can easily mix with a house song,” concluded Madida.
For Black Coffee, DKM can be identified by the house music influences and strong kwaito style lyrics. According to the gifted producer, DKM uses a tempo that is normally used for house music. “DKM tempos go even above 125 beat per minute, which is too fast for kwaito,” he said. According to Black Coffee, although DKM lyrics are kwaito based they are also different in that artist don’t say the same verses or statements over and over. “DKM has revolutionised the kwaito scene, it has forced other artists to start writing lyrics that make sense and that are not repetitive.” Lastly, when it comes to the demand of this style, he said people in clubs and radios always ask for DKM songs, being “the in sound at the moment,” he concluded.
From the words of the man himself, L’vovo Derrango said whenever he does a song; he blends real life into his compositions. “In my music, I make sure that there are certain issues that I talk about so that it can be a lot easier for people to relate to what I am singing about,” he said.
When asked what differentiates his music from the rest, he replied; “My songs have a sing-along feel. If you hear me singing for the first time, the second time you see me on stage, you will sing along with me because my lyrics are catchy and easy to relate to”. It is true that DKM has hit the industry hard and is making most producers and artists’ panel-beat their sound accordingly.
With the response that L’vovo received for his 2006 release ‘Derrango’, it is clear that people want a change and have been longing for a different sound. But wait… Not only did L’vovo introduce a new sound, he has also come up with a dance to go along with his compositions called the “Derrango”. It has become clear that whenever the artist is on stage, people anticipate seeing the “Derrango” movement, dancing along and waiting for the man himself to do his magic.
No comments:
Post a Comment