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south african musiclatest news & developments
Long-time coming: More than a decade into both their careers, Tellaman and Nasty C are releasing a joint album. Photos: Supplied

Nasty C and Tellaman have terms and conditions

On fame, friendship and a long-overdue joint album, Nasty C and Tellaman are exactly where they want to be

South African rapper, producer and musical artist, Sam Turpin

Sam Turpin’s notes on grief

The legacy of photographer Gisèle Wulfsohn echoes through her son’s music as Sam Turpin confronts sorrow through art

There will not be another Maria McCloy

Those who loved her remember a woman who gave everything — to her art, to her city, and to every person lucky enough to have her in their corner

Becoming: Bongeziwe Mabandla’s Ndingubani has been gestating for years, waiting for the courage to come into being. Photo: Christopher Saunders

Bongeziwe Mabandla is ready to be fully present

With a new album on the horizon and sold-out shows across the globe, Bongeziwe Mabandla is stepping into the artist he was always becoming

Poet-activist: Vusi Mahlasela came of age in a community defined by oppression and extraordinary creative resilience. Photo: Gallo Record Company

Vusi Mahlasela has never stopped singing for change

South Africa’s most beloved troubadour on new music, staying rooted in Mamelodi and why peace is worth singing about

Maria McCloy died of heart failure in Johannesburg on Tuesday.

Cultural pioneer Maria McCloy dies at 50

Maria McCloy helped define post-apartheid urban culture through fashion, media, music and an uncompromising commitment to South Africa’s creative spirit

Intentional: Billy Monama quotes Nelson Mandela on the power of
music to elevate and liberate, to unite people in a shared voice.

Billy Monama is staging a revival of memory

The Rebirth of Ubuntu returns with a focus on legacy, as Billy Monama pushes for music that remembers, questions and resonates beyond the stage

Set for the stage: Ndumiso Manana is preparing for the first leg of a nationwide tour that begins in Johannesburg before moving to East London, Makhanda for the National Arts Festival, Durban, Cape Town and Pretoria.  Photo: Supplied

Manana and the art of trusting the process

Fresh off his Standard Bank Young Artist win, Manana reflects on growth, collaboration and creating space for alternative sound in South Africa

Spirit leader: Zawadi Yamungu.

Zawadi Yamungu: The African Dramaturg

Blending jazz, folk and indigenous instrumentation, Zawadi crafts a sound that reconnects audiences to heritage while confronting the politics of the present

Albert Mazibuko, a member of the legendary group Ladysmith Black Mambazo, passed away on Sunday 5 April aged 77. Photo: Facebook.

Albert Mazibuko and the echoes of isicathamiya

As South Africa mourns Albert Mazibuko, his life reveals the deep intersections between music, memory, displacement, and the resilience of black cultural expression.

Audiences can expect a set that moves between Lordkez’s earlier, more experimental work and her newer, R&B-driven material.

Lordkez brings R&B-rooted sound to Cape Town International Jazz Festival debut

Blending R&B, soul and jazz, Lordkez arrives at CTIJF with a clearer sense of identity and a growing reputation as a compelling live performer.

Back to love: Judith Sephuma on legacy, music and the long road home

From global stages to intimate performances, Judith Sephuma shares what has sustained her career and what she hopes to build

Dwson will be performing at the Cape Town International Jazz festival this weekend for the first time. Image: Supplied.

Dwson prepares for debut set at Cape Town International Jazz Festival

Dwson’s upcoming appearance at the major music festival in his hometown places his journey from local clubs to global stages into sharp, full-circle focus

Salif Keita  celebrates Montreux’s arrival in Africa, urging artists to honour their roots while embracing music as a universal language

Salif Keita: Africa’s golden voice on jazz, legacy and his love of South Africa

The Malian legend celebrates Montreux’s arrival in Africa, urging artists to honour their roots while embracing music as a universal language

Quietly radical: Zee Nxumalo occupies a rare position in South African music, both a product of a digital
moment and a shaper of it. Photo: Supplied

Zee Nxumalo isn’t chasing depth — she’s living it

At 23, the singer-songwriter is shaping South African music on her own terms, blending beats, introspection and a fearless sense of self

The Metro FM Music Awards 2026 nominations spotlight amapiano’s dominance, with Jazzwrld and Thukuthela emerging as the names to watch.

Jazzwrld and Thukuthela lead as Metro FM Music Awards 2026 nominees revealed

The Metro FM Music Awards 2026 nominations spotlight amapiano’s dominance, with Jazzwrld and Thukuthela emerging as the names to watch.

Brigding the gap: Khaya Mahlangu belongs to a long lineage of musicians who helped shape a distinctly
South African Afro-fusion sound. Photo: Supplied

The bassists who built Soweto’s distinct sound

The story of South African jazz-fusion is incomplete without the bassists whose innovations quietly carried the music forward

It’s in the bag:
Sun-El Musician,
the artist whose
real name is
Sanele Sithole,
says he’s living
with the strange
emotional
whiplash of
finishing an
album. Photo:
Supplied

Sun-El Musician enters new chapter with ‘Under the Sun’

On Under the Sun, Sun-El Musician lets go of perfection, embraces risk and steps boldly into his independent era

For Manana, touring is about more than performance. It’s about truth. “Live is the last real thing in music,” he says.

“Live is the last real thing”: Manana enters a warmer era

With live instruments and honest energy, Manana proves the stage is still where music tells the truth

Stellar performance: Last week, Jabulani Hadebe, known to the world as Sjava, chose this immersive, celestial space to introduce his latest body of work, iNkanyezi NeZinkanyezi,
translated as A Star Amongst the Stars. Photo: Supplied

A star among the stars

At the Wits Digital Dome, Sjava reflects on 10 years of music by placing himself not above but among the stars that shaped his journey