{"id":43359,"date":"2023-10-30T12:32:30","date_gmt":"2023-10-30T11:32:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.auxsons.com\/?post_type=focus&p=43359"},"modified":"2023-11-02T17:19:36","modified_gmt":"2023-11-02T16:19:36","slug":"amapiano-what-is-it-all-about","status":"publish","type":"focus","link":"https:\/\/www.auxsons.com\/en\/focus\/amapiano-what-is-it-all-about\/","title":{"rendered":"Amapiano: origins, evolution and international success"},"content":{"rendered":"
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This article was written for Music In Africa<\/a><\/strong> and re-publihsed by #AuxSons as part of our media partnership agreement.<\/em><\/p>\n

Amapiano\u2019s demeanour is paradoxical: it\u2019s soulful and innocent yet carnal with bright melodies and occasional raw and repetitive hooks, which deeply resonate in the Johannesburg and Pretoria townships where it was first popularised by bedroom producers.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Initially dismissed as inferior, the township groove is now the biggest music genre in South Africa in terms of consumption, and its success is rooted online and on radio. It has become a persistent grassroots music movement. Spontaneous movements championed by ordinary people are always intriguing, not only because of the content but also the self-awareness and lasting footprint they create for societies. Although identifying with the genre could seem conformist, the value lies in artistic, individual and collective freedoms \u2013 at least for Africans. More importantly, understanding its evolution and why amapiano has become so popular, locally and internationally, could provide a blueprint for embracing it while simultaneously charting its path going forward.<\/p>\n

The genre inherits its name from the Zulu word for \u2018the pianos\u2019, but its musical lineage is multifaceted with a heavy influence from kwaito while fusing its barrelling basslines with local \u201990s deep house, traditional percussion and jazz-inflicted piano\/synth lines. More precisely, the unconventional songs often omit the kick drum at a tempo of about 115 bpm, creating a less aggressive and more languid sonic atmosphere. It is in these unorthodox compositions that the power of the sound exists. It\u2019s also worth noting that the relatively new sound has already evolved into more distinct subgenres, namely dust\/street, private school and techno amapiano.<\/p>\n

Since the experimental sound began emerging in 2012, the popular narrative suggested that its precise place and time of birth were unknown \u2013 unfairly placing its roots in various townships due to the music\u2019s coincidental emergence, with Alexandra, Soweto and Katlehong being the strongholds in Johannesburg, and Atteridgeville, Mamelodi and Soshanguve among the townships moving the needle in Pretoria. However, some early adopters of the sound point to DJ<\/span> and producer duo MFR<\/span> Souls as its originators and coiners.<\/p>\n

Among the early adopters was DJ<\/span> Stokie who popularised the sound in Soweto. \u201cI heard this unique sound from these other DJs called MFR<\/span> Souls from the East Rand and I loved it,\u201d he told News24. MFR<\/span> Souls, who hail from Katlehong, began experimenting with different elements, mixing kwaito and the productions of veteran deep house DJs Clock and Bekzin Terris. The two, along with JazziDisciples from Alexandra and Kabza De Small in Pretoria, were known for playing what was then called iNumba, but MFR<\/span> Souls changed the name when the keys became a prominent part of their compositions. And so the genre was coined.<\/p>\n

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Meanwhile, despite claims to ownership from Pretoria, the DNA<\/span> that underscores its popular bacardi sound is quite dissimilar to that of amapiano, the latter being a derivative of kwaito, which itself was initially inspired by Afro-soul, hip hop and \u201990s house. Barcadi stems from gqom, isigubhu and Shangaan electro music. Nonetheless, Kabza De Small\u2019s manager, David Ngoma, gives a sufficient response in SHAYA<\/span>!<\/em> \u2013 an amapiano documentary that acknowledges the momentous contributions to the genre. \u201cIt belongs to the townships of South Africa,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

MFR<\/span> Souls - Amanikiniki ft. Major League Djz, Kamo Mphela &<\/span> Bontle Smith<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n