explore the intricacies of black queer love and romance with south african duo faka’s ep ‘amaqhawe’

The South African duo FAKA is more than just a collective of performance artists, it is a cultural movement. This is the reminder on the group’s website, which tells of how they were formed in 2015 with a mission of expressing the experience of living in “black queer bodies navigating the cis-hetero-topia of post-colonial Africa,” which has since expanded beyond themselves.

But perform they do, and they do it well. Their latest EP, Amaqhawe, is the second in a trilogy of music offerings delving into the intricacies of Black queer love. Like everything the group tackles, their music goes beyond the expected, taking on not just romantic love, but self-love, unrequited love, childhood love and transactional love.

“Making this was a new experience for us. It was our first time collaborating with other minds on the production and it lead us to a space where we had more freedom to focus on the narrative of the EP,” FAKA explains. “We were deeply inspired by Gqom and that influenced a lot of elements, especially our storytelling style.”

Check out the groundbreaking EP below!