Major League DJz Open Up About Sharing Their 75-Hour Mix Stage With Upcoming Artists. Originating from and inspired by the sounds of kwaito, Afro house, gqom, jazz and the hip hop lyricism of a lot of its vocalists, amapiano captures a uniquely modern South African concoction that speaks as much to the energy of electronic and dance music as it does to the spirituality and grounding of its more traditional African elements. Amapiano has served as this medium through which Major League DJz can connect even further with their heritage, along with so many of its listeners and artists, many of whom made their starts in SA hip hop and rap.
The award-winning producer and DJ duo hosted a 75-hour Balcony Mix Xperience from September 2 and had many in their dancing shoes until September 4 in their attempt to break the world record for the longest DJ set by a duo. Despite having done the time, no record is officially broken yet in terms of world records as there was no-one present to officiate their success.
As usual, the duo were alternating and at times playing their set together. Bandile said they wanted to make sure the event would also act as a platform for new artists. “We are sharing sets with young upcoming artists, not just those who are known. We wanted to give back to the culture. The same way people gave back with me coming up, people like Euphonik, Black Coffee and others, so I have to give back to the culture as well give them a platform to grow.”
“The spirit of amapiano right now to me is African dance music that brings the world together,” Bandile states proudly. Banele agrees before adding: “It breeds African soul. I think that’s why it’s even brought Africa closer together, or brought South Africa closer to [the rest of] Africa.” And they’re right. The pan-African energy of the movement has found artists from across West Africa, East Africa and other parts of Southern Africa immersing themselves in the sound and even collaborating with South African artists on tracks — the branches of amapiano are continuing to sprout, albeit to some mixed reception from the genre’s purists. To Banele though, it’s pretty simple. Those wanting to jump on the wave are more than welcome to if they do it the right way: “They must go to where the sound is being purified, learn and inherit from that, bring people in who started with it so it helps to actually grow the sound.”
