Maraza Is Not Here For Shady Promoters
by Phil Chard
Maraza is not here to have shady brands drag his name through the mud. The South African rapper made that painfully clear earlier today in spectacular fashion.
The rapper who has been enjoying his strongest run to date in his decade long career received a tweet from an excited fan about his reported performance at an event in Midrand later that day. The only issue being that Maraza had no idea of this booking nor had he received payment to perform at this show.
Promoters falsely using the names and images of artists to scam fans is sadly not a new practice. However Maraza, who guards his brand the same way I guard my sneaker collection, decided to take things beyond a simple denial to his followers. In an effort to completely clear his name of any wrongdoing he released a series of tweets where he called out the promoters by name and then released a sequence of videos via his instagram account that detail a highly entertaining and dramatic call between Maraza and one of the event promoters.
It was a truly unfortunate event that won't be isolated by any means but I must commend Maraza on protecting his brand so fiercely and ensuring his fans and potential future victims aren't duped. Imagine if every artist did this to shady promoters?
Watch MarazA’s New Video for Gwan & Stream His AM EP
by Phil Chard
Since 2008 when he appeared on the SABC show Jam Alley and won their Versus TV competition, MarazA has perennially been one or of South Africa's most promising young MCs on the cusp of blowing up. The now 27 year old who cut his teeth as a poetry slam performer and battle rapper made the transition into a fully fledged rapper and has released a series of impressive singles and his debut album Smithsonian One back in 2014.
Two years removed from that project MarazA released the 6 track AM EP earlier this year which also featured his lead single Gwan.
What I have found interesting about MarazA’s return is how it is evident that he has revamped his approach to the industry and seems to have assembled a competent machine to drive his efforts. Unlike 2014 when I remember seeing MarazA venting on Vuzu about his lack of finances and connections to buy his way onto radio and mainstream notoriety. Inexplicably, MarazA also did not release a video for Siyadlala ( his biggest hit at the time, though he did hint that a disagreement resulted in him having to nix the video due to costs).
This time around, backed by a certified banger of a song in Gwan, MarazA seems to have found a way to garner an incredible amount of radio and media push behind him. He has made recent appearances on Vuzu, MTV, Live Amp (where he also premiered the video for Gwan) and Channel O’s Turn Up.
Producer JayTip’s Top 5 Kasi Rap Heaters
by Tseliso Monaheng
We asked Pretoria-based producer JayTip, who's originally from Durban but now resides in a city where he splits time between lecturing Physics, writing academic papers, making beats for artists such as Sabza (a member of the AHHB team) and winning Back To Cty's 10K Challenge, set time aside to compile this playlist for us, as well as share a few words on each track. You can listen to 'Tip's production on his soundcloud and follow him on twitter.
Ikesi by Maraza
I like the fact that he decided to use the not so common Zulu terminology, like the first line, he says “Lasuka lahlala baphuma abafana beqhol’ amakha amaningi.” You’d probably never hear another rapper use the word amakha, which refers to perfume.
V’walla by Abdus
Well Abdus is known for his witty lines, and this joint offers nothing less. The beat is the type you bob your head to. He is proving a point with this one, “ngifahlaza you favourite rapper, that’s why you calling him your man crush” (fahlaza means crush). And he sure does address most of his haters as he raps “abangifiseli unwele olude oDililah, bahlukumeza uSamsoni."
Ziyasha by Breeze
You can call him a modern “dzansansa”. This is your kasi turn-up type of vibe.
Imadlana yok’gcina by Kid X
I dig the kwaito feel and the fact that he didn’t just let the beat do the work for him, he actually wrote. This is definitely one of my festive jams.
100K macassette by Okmalumkoolkat
This is my act silly jam. Dig the (M'du) loop idea but wish they could have done more to it. Malum’ always has something to say that will leave you in stitches.