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The top bands have been chosen.
Voting ends 11/06/2019. One vote per device per 24 hours.

1213
Votes

Gyre (jah-yah)

I am an independent queer rapper based in Johannesburg who has been named one of five artists to watch by Global Citizen. The success of my debut album ‘Queernomics’ has given me the privilege of performing on stages in Johannesburg, Soweto, Cape Town and most notably Switzerland- challenging uninformed and outdated ideals of the queer body and masculinity most effectively through my unapologetic trap anthem ‘Eat My Ass’. Through my work, I aspire to inspire #QueerPride in ours and generations to come- forge it where it does not exist and fortify it where it does. I am but one queer artist who embodies the evolution of hip hop worldwide.

“Got these straight boys shook, got them feeling faint
Cause my walk’s so gay but my talk so straight”
– Inkosi Yenkonkoni, Gyre

MORE BATTLE OF THE BANDS
Bio

Shameless Band SA was founded in Soweto early 2018 by Musa Zwane, Thabang Marant and Thabo Masina. This energetic and talented act describe themselves as a fusion of post punk/tribal/rock music … get to know them by checking out the video to their track “Impicabadala”

2828
Votes
Johannesburg, South Africa
Bio

12 Dogs is a diverse collective of talented young artists who come from different areas of Johannesburg. Our members have unique talents including singing, rapping and musical knowledge. We consist of 6 musical members who each play a variety of instruments. We approach music in a mature, authentic way while drawing inspiration from iconic African artists such as Andile Yenana, Sipho “Hotstix” Mabuse and Simphiwe Dana. These influences were expressed in our latest jazz-rap project. The subject matter of our music is strongly embedded in our South African identity and our hope is to influence and reach many South Africans, particularly the youth, with our different perspectives and opinions. We are very excited for Afropunk 2019 and it would be an honour to take part in the Battle of the bands competition.

2672
Votes
THohoyandou, South Africa
Bio

Hailing from the green, rural Venda, Muneyi is a 23 year old Tshivenda Indie – Folk singer songwriter. His sounds are inspired by the world around him, human behaviour, love, and his upbringing. Many have described his music as a healing experience and some, as a meeting with the gods. Inspired by some of Africa’s greatest, Muneyi hopes to connect, heal and inspire with this sound that is deeply rooted in old Tshivenda folktales and modern sounds. His debut single, ‘Lufuno’ is available on all streaming and downloading platforms.

2848
Votes
Bio

FELE (19) is a young music composer, singer and song writer who’s work is recognized for it’s rich
subtext or themes that comment on everyday issues. Her musical sound draws inspiration from her
culture and isiZulu language but also makes use of modern style electronic and alternative music. FELE’s
education at the National School of the Arts has moulded her craft by giving her an understanding of her
artistry and allowing her performance experience . Her unique sound has won her the South African
Youth Day Symposium from the global alliance Civicus in 2018 and has allowed her to work with
Alliance Francaise and publishing companies like Vusi Leeuw Consulting .FELE is most certainly the
future of South African music because of her young audience and relevant subject matters all put
together but abstract instrumentals.

1973
Votes
Cape Town, South Africa
Bio

Instagram :
@Ukiyocpt
@Lookatups
@tembipowers
@prettyboysmash
@shornsosick
@Whiteferrariii

220
Votes
Johannesburg, South Africa
Bio

I make music and stuff

2739
Votes
Bio

Ygrenysisanexperimentalmusicmovement,basedinJohannesburg.Itwas oficialylaunchedinOctober2017,byDitiro“Pot3nt”Thupaemang,the founder&CreativeHead.ItlaunchedasasolidmovementunderSynergy CreativeTeam,aninformalagencythatrenderscreativeservicesto companies,individualsandthegeneralpublic.Themind-blow:Ygrenys[E-gre- nis]is“Synergy”speledbackwards.Throughhardworkanddedication, Ygrenyshasalreadyreleased1Mixtape,folowedby3EP’sfrom individual artistsshortlyafter.Ygrenysstrivestobefulycreative,bothvisualy& musicaly.Itcurentlyhas3producers,and5artists(Pot3ntincluded):
1.DaMox(maleproducer) 2.Dopebwoi(maleproducer) 3.Jkhetranz(maleproducer) 4.Amor(femalerapper) 5.Khaeda(femalerapper/singer) 6.WayneI(malerapper) 7.Stex(malesinger/rapper/producer) 8.Pot3nt(CreativeHead&al-rounder,male)
Ifaskedaboutstyle,Ygrenysblendsheavytrapsoundswithambient environmentaltextures.Flow&melodyalsoplayabigroletocreateaful soundexperience.However,ourmusicisforeverevolving,sincewehavean experimentalmindsettoprojects.

174
Votes
Boksburg, Gauteng, South Africa
Bio

Thomas Hazey is a South African Recording Artist, Songwriter and occasional beat-maker from Boksburg, Gauteng, born 18 March 1997.

A member of the music collective, Frequency Manipulation (FM), Hazey began releasing music online from as early as 2010 with fellow FM member and long time collaborator, Daev Martian.
Hazey prides himself as an artist who uses both his platform and voice to speak on things which tug at the human heart, pop-culture and his personal life experiences – in a manner his audience finds both entertaining and engaging.

Having collaborated with the likes of ASAP Shembe, ndugu.ndugu, DJ SKinniez – just to name a few, Hazey, to many, is considered to be a young urban artist hoping to challenge society through art.

2359
Votes
Johannesburg, South Africa
Bio

Zambian-born, Botswana-raised and Johannesburg-based MOONGA K. is accompanied by an ageless soul and a fresh, international perspective. His crystal vocals cut through an industry of complacency with soft, striking introspection, atop authentic instrumentation and jagged production. After successfully releasing his debut 6-track EP “Free” which was hailed for its vivid fusion of introspective neo-soul, confessional alt-pop and elements of traditional R&B, that was selected for the Apple Music New Artist Spotlight, MOONGA K. returned with debut full-length effort “Wild Solace” in 2018. Marrying the smooth musings of traditional and modern R&B with a razor- edge, electronic outline – an alternative and wholly unique offering announces his effervescent presence with pure soul. Produced by SAMA winner Greg Carlin, and childhood friend Andrew Williams, “Wild Solace” sways from indie rock rhythms to soulful piano drama. He’s performed at Rocking the Daisies, OppiKoppi, Splashy Fen, Smoking Dragon and Park Acoustics, to name a few over the last two years. His upcoming project, an EP titled “an ode to growth,” is an Alt. R&B/Soul focused record that discusses love in all its forms and how growth is a necessity for healing. The project features contributions from more producers and is set for an end of year 2019 release.

2245
Votes
Bio

Yanga is an independent new age soul artist living in Cape Town . He’s sound is fused with a lot of elements and interestingly titled his debut EP “Elements” which was released in October 2018. The songs on the EP except for one are all named after chemical elements and yanga did this to find creative way to introduce the fact that he has a scientific background as well ( he’s a medical doctor ) . He’s graced a few stages namely the “ Absolut one source music festival , Feel good series ‘ UMI ‘ festival and the Chad sessions to name a few. He’s a soulful musician but a very energetic one too so at his shows be prepared to sweat.

2687
Votes
Johannesburg, South Africa
Bio

Experimental music maker.

549
Votes
Bio

Kujenga is a young band made up of four friends based in the Cape Town. Kujenga is the Swahili translation for the words build, or create, which is what the quartet loves to do; create art and create experiences.

Our sound is a combination of music that we as band members are influenced by, including indigenous African music (mbaqanga, maskandi) to black American music (jazz, neo soul R&B).
Kujenga released their debut album, Nationality on July 10 2019. It is a collection of original music written by the band that moves across genres. The name of the album is inspired by Kujenga’s approach to music, which hasn’t involved sticking to one specific style of music, but be influenced by all sounds.
The album tackles themes such as Africanism, spirituality, and the right to political expression.
The band is hoping to continue to release more music within a year and change the face of jazz landscape within the city of Cape Town and South Africa at large.

252
Votes
Pretoria, South Africa
Bio

Bodies Untamed Mixtape:
https://drive.google.com/open?id=0Bwk59uTbvQP3clFkbXJMN3NITVU

Nuerotic, I
: https://drive.google.com/open?id=0Bwk59uTbvQP3OHEtSHBuQ2NOanM

38
Votes
Vosloorus, South Africa
Bio

Born and raised in the East Rand of Johannesburg, Aba Sindisiwe Aba Pheli Shembe is a South African Hip-Hop recording artist, record producer and singer songwriter. ASAP Shembe’s first encounter with music dates back as far as his childhood, having grown up in a household where his parents sold alcohol as extra income to their close friends and neighbours, music was always playing in the background curating his soundtracks for life.

Growing up ASAP Shembe was exposed to a wide variety of music through his Fathers extensively large cassette collection, which would prove pivotal in his artistic direction and sound cultivation. Starting out as a producer and later transitioning into a full artist in 2014, ASAP Shembe
released his first EP called ‘Inkinga’ which was followed up by another EP titled ‘Butter’.

Inventive and artistic as his name, the Vosloorus based artist and producer has merged a 90’s stimulated South African sound with ultramodern
aesthetics that could be easily identified and relatable in the universal
landscape of worldly music. Already being dubbed as one of the artists
breaking boundaries in a genre loosely called ‘Digital Maskhandi’ in a
article by Rofhiwa Maneta of Sunday Times.

Some of ASAP Shembe’s major accomplishments in include
performing on the same stage as artists such as Moonchild Sanelly and
Langa Mavuso at the ‘We Are One Music Festival’, performing on Etv’s morning show and gracing the cover of The Sunday Times “Lifestyle”
section.

293
Votes
Midrand, South Africa
Bio

Dark Skinned Brother

2382
Votes
Johannesburg, South Africa
Bio

Witney Stander (born 17 May 1997) is a singer/songwriter and model who releases music under the name ‘Witney.’ She was born and raised in the East Rand (JHB, South Africa). Witney’s powerful lyrics are carried by her eclectic voice and describes her sound as alternative/soul. Since she started making music Witney has dabbled in several genres including alternative, R&B/soul, hip hop, house, rap and pop. While constantly testing the limits of her reach, Witney wishes to develop her sound more and expand on her knowledge of the music industry. Her influences come from the likes of IAMDDB, Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, Alex Isley, Little Simz, Mura Masa, Yazmin Lacey, Lauryn Hill and Jorja Smith.

Witney started making music towards the end of 2018 and her first single titled Ren’z Interlude (produced by Daev Martian), debuted in December of that year. Following her debut was another single titled February 7th (produced by Cubin), which quickly became a crowd favourite and has nearly 40 000 plays on Spotify to date. Witney’s first live performance was in early May 2019 where she opened for the multi-talented Xavier Steeze at his EP listening party at Monte Casino. She went on to create and release her first EP titled “I Wanna Make Beautiful Things, Even If Nobody Cares” (IWMBT) with producer Kevin Blacc. She hosted her first two-hour live show for the release of this project on 18 May 2019.

Witney has also featured on 1873 FM for the Brunch Show with Don Calya and Donaldo Barbosa. She was also a regional finalist in the ‘Put Me On’ competition hosted by Sportscene and Puma that aims to support up and coming artists all over South Africa. Since she began pursuing her music career, Witney has written, recorded and released several singles – the most recent being Ifo/The World Is My Oyster. She is working towards producing her own music and has developed an interest in visuals and creative directing while working on new material. Her goal is to represent and expand the vastness of South African music whilst growing her brand as an artist of many talents.

Witney. teamed up with Kevin Blacc again and will be releasing an EP titled ‘Whoever’s In The Light’ in November 2019 and before the 2019 comes to a close, Witney aims to bring forth more visuals and collaborations and is currently working with a number of artists and producers on some exciting new material including a feature on a single with ‘Move For Me’ producer Jillz Mijiga titled ‘Open Your Eyes’ which is said to be released in Summer 2019.

For more music and information, please visit: www.biglink.to/witney.
To read more please visit: https://bubblegumclub.co.za/music/indulge-in-witney-s-soulful-sound/

374
Votes
Johannesburg, South Africa
Bio

ZETINA MOSIA – A New & Exciting Musical Experience!

Born in Accra, Ghana… To a Ghanaian Mother & South African Father, Zetina is no stranger to hybrid of origin, life & it shows immensely in her Music.With her Electro-Coustic band, Zetina Mosia has been making waves on the Jozi live music scene. She has been performing at various venues such as Wits Theatre, The Great Hall, Drill Hall, House of Nsako, Afrikan Freedom Station, Shikisha, Kitchener’s Carvery and events/festivals like Jammin’ ‘n Ting Festival, Fete De la Musiq Festival and Kool Out Live and the LETOFE Music Festival in Lesotho December 2016. She has collaborated and/or shared stages with some of South Africa’s well respected musicians like Tshepo Tshola, Oliver Mtukudzi, Mafikizolo, Stimela and Grammy nominated Syleena Johnson, Tshepo Tsotetsi, Mpumi Dlamini, Malcolm Jiyane, Zama Jobe, Judith Sephuma, Khuli Chana and Canadian Indie cult band Bad Bad Not Good.

Zetina Mosia’s album, titled The RoundAbout,was released in December 2015, by Iapetus Records and is available online at BandCamp.com. She has recently released an Electro-AfroFuturoFunk – 7 Track EP “The B-Sides: Remixes & Reimaginings”(November 2018) which started out with remixes of songs from her debut The RoundAbout but given her unsettling creativity some new songs crept in and a new genre evolved she labelled Trap Funk, which is upbeat dance music and trap. Currently Zetina is working / collaborating with producer and DJ extraordinaire Eye-On-Feather as a Duo called LɔLɔ Amour.

On the side Zetina Mosia has been organizing a series of events called the Sound & Space Experience in prominent venues like Nikki’s Oasis, Good Luck Bar, J&B Hive, and, in Durban, The Jazzy Rainbow, whereby she collaborates with various jazz musicians, DJs on MPC, Live Action Painting, and Contemporary Movement Dancers, experimenting with interesting avant-garde and abstract ways of experiencing her music. In 2018 Zetina will be performing at Mdumbi Green Festival in the WIld Coast, Eastern Cape and in 2019, she will be headlined the 3rd Freetown Music Festival in Sierra Leone and will be headlining the Platinum Jazz Festival in Rustenburg, North West in December, 2019.

NB: 2nd Album in Process!!!

53
Votes
Pretoria, South Africa
Bio

Stage named ‘The Yze’, Neo Maboe is an alternative afro-rapper that employs conscious, vibrant lyricism with a decadent, sleek timbre that simultaneously enriches the earbuds and empowers the mind. His jovial outlook on humanity and fraternal perception of the world community – and Africa’s place in it – enhances his sound with a vast dimension, abundant in sage-like wisdom and youthful vigour. This is ‘The Yze’.

327
Votes
Lagos | Gauteng,
Bio

SInger | Songwriter | Music Producer

219
Votes
Cape Town, South Africa
Bio

“With a voice that floats effortlessly between powerful and delicate, sensual and strong, longing and assertive, Lana Crowster uses her music to paint a picture of a woman coming into her own. Influenced by R&B, Soul and Hip-Hop – all against a rich backdrop of Jazz – Lana’s songs are her commentary on love and life, producing a sound that is emotionally and musically compelling as the stories she tells. Songs and inspirations mix on stage with Lana’s big, bold and distinctive personality for a reaction that’s beyond chemical, beyond physical and beyond emotional – one that’s pure magic, and an experience not to be missed.”

292
Votes
Pietermaritzburg/Johannesburg,
Bio

Don’t forget the Nya . Bookings, Beats: simmysimmynya@gmail.com

83
Votes
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