ICYMI : “We Are Not Threatened By Amapiano” – Mafikizolo Reveal. Mafikizolo is a South African Afro-pop music duo formed in 1996, consisting of composer Theo Kgosinkwe and lead singer Nhlanhla Nciza. The duo rose to fame after they released their singles “Ndihamba Nawe kuphela”, “Kwela Kwela”, “Sibongile”, “Udakwa Njalo” . The group released their self-titled album Mafikizolo in 1997 and Music Revolution in 1999.
Speaking to Music In Africa, the duo revealed that as much as amapiano is taking the world by storm and making headlines, they are not scared by it.
Theo Kgosinkwe: We have been in the industry for 22 years, but it’s good for the industry because it shows growth and a new generation that is coming in.
Nhlanhla Nciza: When you are 22 years in the industry, you see many things come and go, even the genres. Can you imagine how many genres were there 22 years ago? It’s basically what’s happening when gqom was the top genre and right now its amapiano. There was an era when we had bubble-gum, kwaito, Afropop, followed by hip hop. We have remained true to our ourselves and the songs and that could be the reason people continue to love our music.
“Can you imagine a situation where we start singing hip hop simply because hip hop is popular? Let the hip hop guys have their fans and the same applies to amapiano, but that doesn’t mean we will say no to an amapiano artist who approaches us for a collaboration. We are open for collaborations and Mafikizolo is one band that loves experimenting. If an artist comes with something that is doable for Mafikizolo, something that does not take away our authentic sound, then we can go into the studio together. We have worked with hip hop artists before, so it’s all about being true to ourselves. We have to do it in such a way that we don’t lose our fans,” Nhlanhla added.
