Every week, OkayAfrica highlights the top African music releases — including the latest Afrobeats and amapiano hits — through our best music column, African Music You Need to Hear This Week.
Read ahead for our round-up of the best new African music tracks and music videos that came across our desks this week.
Jorja Smith – “Alive” (feat. Wizkid)
Late nights, walking hand in hand with your person, and nothing else in the world matters: these are the feelings that come from listening to Jorja Smith and Wizkid‘s collaborative joint, “Alive.” “We be up all night/ how could you ever think twice when it comes to you and I?” she wonders, as log drums fill the space between yearning and fulfillment. It’s a song about promises kept, love found, and love cherished. Wizkid, ever cool and collected, brings his effortless charisma to the party. “I got the type of love wey go make you feel your best,” he professes, and for a brief moment, the world and all its troubles fall by the wayside.
Oriiginelle – Loving This Black Woman [LP]
A few months ago, Oriiginelle reached out to her people online, asking if they’d like to help pick her next single. The masses dutifully obliged, and that spark inspired other outreach gestures, like the one where she offered to pick people up for a drive and play the mix of her upcoming project. Titled Loving This Black Woman, the album is 14 tracks of joy, honesty, adventure, rhythm, bravery, and, of course, love. The features are expansive and artistically adventurous; Oriiginelle isn’t interested in comfort zones. Jay Jody, Saul Madiope, 21 Oranges, and Nyota Parker are just some of the names that appear, representing countries such as Lesotho, South Africa, and the DR Congo. The center is held together by the Eswatini emcee and vocalist’s remarkable control of mood and flow, and by richly textured production. She’s a bright spark, and this, her fourth full-length offering, is a mature body of work that demonstrates a rare level of focus.
Mr Eazi, Dre Skull, Vybz Kartel – “Lambo”
Mr Eazi‘s journey through music has been marked by incredible highs and a spirit that continually seeks to outdo itself. A few months removed from his R&B album with King Promise, the emPawa label head and global cultural provocateur is back, this time with a dancehall twist. He recruits super-producer Dre Skull — beloved for his solo work and collaborations with the likes of Popcaan; as well as Vybz Kartel, arguably the greatest dancehall deejay of the past three decades, a man so influential that even a prison sentence couldn’t dull his dominance. “Lambo” is pure vibes, as though they took an island and placed it inside a song, and the interplay between Mr Eazi and Vybz Kartel makes for a fascinating listen.
Gina Jeanz – “Ride”
Namibia-born and Zurich-based, Gina Jeanz has built an enviable catalog, the work of an artist guided by intention and immense self-belief. “Ride” is hypnotic, a controlled chaos with neither beginning nor end in sight. A menacing bassline anchors the entire composition, complemented by piano stabs that recall ’90s house music, as well as mesmerizing vocals capable of making all the pain disappear, if only for a moment. Say the artist: “I wanted to create something that feels grounding but liberating at the same time — a record that connects people through rhythm while carrying that feeling of warmth, openness and escape.”
Lelowhatsgood – Rebirth Is Necessary [EP]
Lelowhatsgood has spent years building scenes and movements while also discovering the sonic cues to soundtrack his own internal revolution. Renowned for DJ sets that sit at the bleeding edge of electronic music, the artist only took up production relatively recently, yet has already earned a SAMA nomination and collaborated with the legendary Babes Wodumo. Rebirth Is Necessary is his follow-up EP, consisting of five tracks that showcase the sounds animating his world. Its foundation is gqom, but the world-building stretches much further, into deeper and menacing phrasings from Afro-tech, rap, and house, assisted by artists and producers ranging from Espacio Dios on “Ba Ko Kae?” to Lazarusman and Kiing Bhutie on “Mind ur Business”, and Unkle Ken, Rifle Deep, Thobeka, and SunOrnza, who turn “Ngiw’loGogo” into the ultimate party starter.
Maglera Doe Boy – “Yahoo Boyz” (feat. Flvme)
It’s been more than a few years of Maglera Doe Boy building a solid foundation, to the current point where he is one of South Africa’s most elite penmen. On the Flvme-featuring “Yahoo Boyz”, the rapper goes into his usual pan-African bag, drawing parallels between his intercontinental connections and the criminal underground that powers the world. “My lil’ bro Yahoo, yeah he a scammer/ I sent the VPN, told him make a plan,” he spazzes, his voice a mix of dungeon theatrics and the effects of a heavy night the next morning. Produced by Oro WaAfrica, Big Les and Zoocci Coke Dope, the track works an orchestral sample into something downright mean and potent. For his next set of magic tricks, Maglera Doe Boy has his sights set on an international music career, and this is a step in the right direction.
Anabel Rose – “Blase”
The West African scene is having a moment right now, dishing out banger after banger of alternative sonics to correct the course. Anabel Rose is in the thick of it and presents a strong argument for that position on her latest release. “Blase” is a liberated exhibit of a thick, juicy synth that releases tension as its default position. The music sounds like you could live in it, like it could grow hands and embrace you while at it.
ZuluMecca – “CAP”
A rapper and an actor, ZuluMecca‘s talents stretch far and wide. While her solo career only started picking up post-lockdown, she’s been exercising her music muscle on different projects for longer than that. With an inclination towards the grimier side of rap, she’s carved a loyal following that keeps abreast of her output, scrutinizes every lyric, and is generally cultured. She continues her existential rap streak: “You ever had to fight for your soul/ like, fight for it though?” she asks, while the moody piano loop and dusty drums, courtesy of Shooterkhumz and ClxssicsOnly, enhance the experience. Rap this good should become part of the national listening curriculum.
Gyakie – “Treasure”
“I’m in love with you/ so let me be your treasure, forever you will be mine,” declares Gyakie on “Treasure,” where she drags syllables and contorts words, giving the sonic illusion of stretching time. The music, produced by Docent, utilizes the màrà template of fast-paced kicks and percussion that Rema popularized, and delivers it to its logical next step. She serves high energy, class, creative songwriting and arrangement, deprogramming all expectations of what African music sounds like in just over two minutes. At this stage in her career, Gyakie’s unfurling into something of a mythical figure in Afropop, proving that she’s got staying power with every banger she releases.
Nduduzo Makhathini – The Myth We Choose [LP]
Nduduzo Makhathini‘s been rollin’ with the punches, asserting his mastery in overt and covert ways, and working his way to the current era, where he sits as one of South Africa’s prized possessions in the music arena. While he is known mainly for jazz, his oeuvre extends into different forms of electronic music, and his latest outing, The Myth We Choose, is the grandest exposition of these influences. It features a wide array of artists; Muneyi, Black Coffee, Omagugu, and Shabaka Hutchings make appearances at different points of the 16-track journey. It’s a travelogue in song form; Makhathini’s in dialogue with all the aspects that shape who he is — from the spiritual to the intellectual, the personal and the social.
Thando Zide – Ku Ngawe [LP]
“Imizamo yami mayingapheleli emoyeni, mayikhanye nje ngezinkanyezi,” sings Thando Zide on “Imizamo,” a brooding, calm, and introspective song lifted from her debut full-length album, KuNgawe. Arriving three years after her last EP, UMvulo, the work follows a period of intense musical growth that has seen her spread her wings across different genres — from jazz to amapiano and more. The songwriting, which is her strongest weapon, is clear-eyed and assured, while her voice and the accompanying music ensure that this will be the sweetest ride you’ll enjoy this year.
Magixx – “Feel Am”
Magixx wears his heart on his sleeve with “Feel Am,” and takes the opportunity to become vulnerable for the sake of love. “Cause I’m in love with you, the way your body sharp go killy person,” he declares, the type of words to make a man go down on his knees. The impact is immediate; the song will have you reflecting and course-correcting from the very first moment.
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