THE HOUSE OF SUN-EL: Sun-El Musician, Simmy, Mlindo The Vocalist, and other related artists

The Blossom EP might top all my year lists. Her voice is amazing. And I still can't get enough of Kabza de Small's productions.

Mutare is in Shona btw.

the Amanda Black album is really fantastic too

“Into Ingawe” is still gorgeous. There’s a video now: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKaCbh8dqC8

More from the Sun-El realm:

Mamela, the debut album by Sun-El protégé Sino Msolo is very good. I posted the first two singles a while back, this is his latest video (for one of the least Sun-Elly tracks):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KprQC0F-7oU
Sino Msolo • Kaso

S-Tone (a guest vocalist on both Africa to the World and Tugela Fairy) also has an EP out:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2TtxUQXSObY
S-Tone • Imbizo

that Kaso is a jam, thanking you breastcrawl

new videos for Akulaleki and AmaDM here and for Lotto on the way for Samthing:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IlxDqJu6eUE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=35JcVWV6PiY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jky2fBbfr4M

all of this stuff is going to be a godsend today, a good vibes IV drip

Speechless.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TFqhCvLuTg
DJ Stokie ft. Loxion Deep & Kabza De Small • Senorita

wow that's utterly sublime

I listed this in my most recent 11 favourite songs of the moment, fuck, but I never actually posted it:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWm3qf5LD-g

DJ Sonic SA ft. Manqonqo & Tonic Jazz • Endlini

This is so beautiful. It’s South African - but in a more “international” house style. There might be a better thread for it, I’d like to know, I’ll post it there too:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T0qE7s4Iylo
J Maloe ft. Heidi B & Ceega wa Meropa • It Is Time

Another gorgeous KabZamthing, from the new The Return of the Scorpion Kings album:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U98dgh9NSI4
Kabza De Small x DJ Maphorisa ft. Samthing Soweto • Chuze

(check the Rolling Afropop thread for more)

Because I love it/her so:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qYaH-Fa6Sjw

Video for “Tender Love”, Sha Sha’s very first:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWrvCe5n4tE

Remember to vote🔸for the Blossom EP!

Just noticed the YouTube link for this is broken:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lbpv1TajH-o
DJ Stokie ft. Loxion Deep & Kabza De Small - Senorita

Spotify link. It’s votable🔶 material.

I posted it elsewhere already, but it belongs here too: my playlist with all the South African tracks and albums that were nominated for the EOY.

First 36 out of the 37 nominated tracks (Heavy K’s “Yebo Mama” is missing), from “Sondela” to “John Cena”, and after that the 9 nominated albums, from Sho Madjozi back down to Tresor.

ILM 2019 EOY🇿🇦SOUTH AFRICA

mthunzi's "insimbi", a v nice track that was shared upthread a few months ago, now has a video out to accompany the release of his debut album selimathunzi just now

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rE82RA6ziaA

album also includes last year's "vuka" and "ngibambe la" + the more recent cut "elentulo"

It also has a track with Simmy - and this beautiful song with Ami Faku, “Uyathandeka”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eo8mZjM666c

It’s quite a long album (16 tracks). Some of the best tracks are in the final section.

randomly revisited "akanamali" tonight -- years later, still tremendous.

Sha Sha “Tender Love” : this is great! thanks to the tracks poll I'm trying to get a bit more up to speed on African pop today and wow! I'm just listening to the Africa Now playlist on apple music. this is what I hear out in my quartier, now I can begin to put names to the sounds.

the whole sha sha album, blossom, is great

New 2020 song featuring one of the new voices of 2019:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HmzlI8t81NI

Prince Kaybee ft. Shimza, Black Motion & Ami Faku • Uwrongo

Euler, you might also want to try the track “We’Mama” on DJ Maphorisa & Kabza De Small’s Scorpion Kings album, which was the first time I heard Sha Sha. Gorgeous song. I would be over the moon if that album places in the Albums 77 next week (besides Sha Sha’s and Samthing Soweto’s own albums).

wrote and deleted a few "more like Urighto" joeks, but anyway that is a lovely tune

That iron still very hot:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4TPab7xaeP0

Kabza de Small & DJ Maphorisa ft. Samthing Soweto, Aymos, Mas Musiq & Myztro • Emcimbini

KdSXDJM dropped YET ANOTHER album this weekend (it's an Apple Music exclusive for now).

Added to library. Even though I'm not done with Return at all, sigh.

Listening to Umuthi, the new Blaq Diamond album rn and it’s a treat. “Love Letter”, the new single is beautiful (and there’s also the very lovely “P.S.”!) Mind, there’s nothing house about this, think Sjava and maybe Mlindo.

The video version of “Love Letter” adds 1’30 to the song, but be warned: it’s NSFW, as it contains lots of graphic violence.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LNIXUsFM9AQ

The new Kabza x Maphorisa album is now on Spotify (the album is showing up empty for me, but you can find the individual tracks by searching for “Kabza” plus “live”).

Listening to “eMcimbini” with Samthing (see my earlier post) and it’s just amazing to me how these guys collectively keep coming up with new ways of beautiful.

update: the full album is there now, no further need for workarounds

randomly revisited "akanamali" tonight -- years later, still tremendous.

That song is transcendent perfection.

Wow “Dubai” on the first Scorpion Kings is wiiiild

The new Scorpion Kings Live is niiiice

iiii-iiii aaa-aaaa iiii-iiii-iya

emcimbiiiini

I’m in love with this song

eMcimbini is hands down my favourite song of the year thus far. I always sing along with the "piano-pi-a-noooo" part.

So is this the amapiano thread now or is that still the baby are you coming thread? Unsure where to gush about this stuff.

I am also very much into Luuu Nineleven and Daliwonga's Friends With Benefits. That guitar!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nW8f8RDrVPw

*Luu

110% cosign on “eMcimbini”, my song of the year so far as well.

That Luu Nineleven jam is nice - is it a guitar or a keyboard tho?

as for where to accommodate piano, it’s up for grabs, I suppose - meaning: I don’t really know. I’m inclined to reserve this thread for the more deep-housey/vocalistic & melodious/radio-friendly (as in SA FM) type tracks and post the more clubby/shouty-MC-assisted/“ratchety” amapiano stuff on the BATC? thread.
(similarly, I posted Sha Sha’s boppy “Water” on the Rolling Afropop thread instead of here)

Meanwhile, loving this gorgeous track off the brand new De Mogul SA album Lessons. Not on YouTube yet, so click here for the Spotify link.

Track info: De Mogul SA ft. Eminent Fam • Ndiza Nam

There is a video for “Ndiphelele” with Natalia Mabaso tho: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qg7DNu9mM9A
(but do check the full album version for the fantastic final 40 seconds of the outro!)

A lot of the album is very soulful, but closing track “Na Ku Radza” is a prime amapiano banger, so on the “Baby Are You Coming?” thread it goes.

Aight, let’s move the amapiano stuff to the rolling afro thread then!

And idk, it starts off sounding like a guitar - that twang is difficult to accomplish with a keyboard, no - before loving into what definitely sounds like keys, then back again to the twang. It may be keys all the time, but it’s mesmerizing noen the less.

Aight, let’s move the amapiano stuff to the rolling afro thread then!

― human and working on getting beer (longneck), maandag 17 februari 2020 21:05

In short, this thread -imvho- is a thread for Beauties; Bops and Bangers belong elsewhere.

just a rule of thumb, nothing set in stone, pinch of salt, et cetera.

Only half-joking, I’m afraid. I do find the division between beauties and bangers to be somewhat... academic? I mean, these tracks mix well enough and belong to adjacent subgenres and sometimes even to the same genre. So maybe just maybe we need a SA thread? Or a dedicated Amapiano thread? Idk.

Not sure about academic, but I’m aware it’s not at all clear-cut and a bit arbitrary. Still, and very still, I’d argue that this particular thread (which wasn’t even started by me, so who am I to talk) has kept a remarkably unified musical feel over the years. It’s never become a catch-all thread for SA music, people seem to know what fits and what doesn’t and seem to appreciate it all the more for it - and that’s the beauty of it (pun pretty much intended). I’m thinking it should stay that way?

And yeah, it’s kinda ironic. I was quite resistant towards balkanising the Rolling thread for the longest time and now here I am splitting hairs about differences within genres from one country.

The thing is tho, most of these threads start almost organically, and while a Rolling SA thread would be very nice in principle, we already have this thread and the BAYC? one doing what they’re doing and/or ready to be repurposed.

I do definitely want to start a dedicated thread for “eMcimbini” tho lol!

(and in case this was somehow misunderstood, afaic “Friends With Benefits” feels right at home on this here Sun-El thread)

Let’s start an emcimbini thread, then! We can put all of the Kabza stuff in there AND lobby for it as song of the year in time for the next poll. Win win! Lol

piano! piano!

have something in the works, should be up this evening

xp

Pi-ano! It’s a celebration:

🎹🎹PİANO! PİANO!🎹🎹 - a song appreciation thread for “eMcimbini” by Kabza De Small & DJ Maphorisa ft. Aymos, Samthing Soweto, Mas Musiq & Myztro

Claudio x Kenza are signed to Sun-El’s label. They’re producers in their own right, but this track from their upcoming album seems to have the Sun-El touch:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0E4cfXRd-U
Claudio x Kenza ft. Mpumi • Yasha Imizi