In the midst of the pandemic flooded with information, conspiracies, fear and uncertainty there was/is also a plethora of Live Streams and New Music pondering on the pandemic. We sifted through the outpouring of music and came across some interesting chunes from South Africa and compiled them in our first edition for 2020 of our Essential Mixes. The Corona Lockdown Mix.
This is one of the most inclusive Essential Mixes we have put together so far, in a sense, as it covers the provinces and the nuances in Mzansi Reggae, from Cape to Limpopo via Durban til Zim. As with all the Essential Mixes, we put together the old and the new, the known and the unknown to give a glimpse of what is Reggae in Mzansi. The mix kicks off in the Western Cape with Ginger Cobra invoking his isiXhosa heritage. Relative new comer O2Man aka Oxygen Man also from the Cape comes with his independently produced rough on the edges track called Covid19. While still in the Cape, we explore the steadily growing sub genre of Reggae in Mzansi, the Afrikaaps Dancehall. Afrikaaps Dancehall originates in the ghettos of Cape Town, in the Cape Coloured areas. Afrikaaps is derived from the words Afrikaans and Kaapstaad (Cape Town). The term is used mostly in the Hip Hop Circles but has crossed over to Dancehall as both genres are interlinked. There is a new wave of artists who are set preserve and uphold the subculture – which is heavily influenced by Rastafari teachings and the ghetto livity – by staunchly delivering their songs in Afrikaans patios. Iyatunez is one of the many artists pushing for the subculture and making a mark in the Dancehall fratenity and he come here with a lament: Hulle Wil Os Siek Maak from the Covid Attact Riddim. Silectah Joseph (Sick Like Corona) and Madd Bwoy Khaki (Rules and Laws Lockdown) go in hard with dancehall tracks that deviates from the mostly reggae tunes in the Mix.
Tocky Vibes and Slagga B add a much needed Zim flavour in the mix and they are among the first wave of artists to put out songs addressing the pandemic. Pepsin stands alone in representing GP and Maximum Styles. Then its the Take Over from the Limpopo and Durban artists as they seal it off on the Lockdown Inity Riddim, a Reggae and Dub Riddim produced by Bass Player Steve Netshishivhe. Then LNT Sound, our go to Sound, put together the final touches and presented us with The Corona Lockdown Mix.
