Hennessy, the world’s leading cognac brand and cultural tastemaker, has unveiled the highly anticipated Hennessy Cypher 2025 — and this year, the spotlight belongs to Kabza De Small, South Africa’s globally celebrated King of Amapiano.
More than just a featured artist, Kabza produced the entire Cypher track, anchoring a collaboration that unites voices from South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, Tanzania and the UK. His production fuses the pulse of township-born Amapiano with Afrobeats and Hip-Hop, creating a cross-continental sound that reflects Africa’s growing influence on the global stage.
“The Hennessy Cypher has always been about amplifying Africa’s creativity and showing the world how diverse and innovative our sound truly is,” says Lungile Mpharu, Brand Manager, Hennessy South Africa. “Having Kabza lead this year’s Cypher — as both producer and featured artist — is a proud moment for South Africa. It shows how far Amapiano has traveled, and how our artists are shaping global music culture.”
Recognised as the pioneer of Amapiano, Kabza De Small has consistently broken boundaries. He was Spotify’s most-streamed South African artist in both 2020 and 2024, and has worked with international heavyweights such as Drakeand 21 Savage. His involvement in the Cypher cements his role not only as a genre-defining artist, but also as a cultural architect shaping Africa’s soundscape.
Joining Kabza on the track are some of Africa’s and the diaspora’s most exciting voices:
- Femi One (Kenya)
- Joey B (Ghana)
- Blaqbonez (Nigeria)
- Jaivah (Tanzania)
- Ms Banks (UK)
For the first time, the Cypher also highlights female talent, with Femi One and Ms Banks bringing fresh perspectives to the mix. Together with Kabza’s production, their voices craft a track that is bold, genre-fusing and gender-inclusive.
The accompanying music video, directed by Human Studio in Cape Town and styled by Bee Diamondhead, unfolds inside the Hennessy House — a conceptual mansion where each room represents a genre, rhythm or cultural movement. As the artists move from space to space, Hip-Hop, Afrobeats and Amapiano co-exist, visually embodying the Cypher’s message of unity through diversity.
For more than 50 years, Hennessy has been embedded in the DNA of global music, name-dropped in over 4,000 songs by icons like Tupac, Nas, Snoop and Drake. The Hennessy Cypher, first launched in Nigeria in 2011, has grown into a pan-African platform celebrating lyrical mastery, bold expression and cultural storytelling.
This year, with Kabza De Small steering the sound, the Cypher doesn’t just celebrate African creativity — it positions Amapiano at the heart of the global conversation.
