As a fellow South African, I can truly say that we have had the privilege over the past years to truly experience the evolution of legends in the music space with some venturing over into the music business as music executives and some following their vision to the end whether it be making music that speaks to them at the time and polishing their brand to who they are. One of those to truly come out of SA soil and do it right over the past years is rapper, songwriter, and now actor, Kwesta as he corrected his past wrongs from his business experience with an evolved and yet still calm brand. You see coming from a background of working within the music industry, it can exhaust you as you may find yourself trusting certain people thinking that they have your best intentions. This has unfortunately humbled many as at times the opposite may be the end result.
Nonetheless, Kwesta has managed to dust himself back up from the shackles of traumatic experiences which led to him finding himself and truly defining his journey over various sonic extensions such as ‘Speak N Vrostaan’ in 2022 with multi-platinum selling music producer, Kabza De Small under his allias, Papta Mancane. This project truly allowed Kwesta to tap back into his K1 roots over Kwaito-infused tracks whilst still capturing his love for rap. It extended a theme or rather a part of him that has co-existed over the past few years. Not only did this release allow his audience to know him as uBhut Senzo but also the core elements behind the Kwesta brand. This evolution blew many away as we all waited for the moment when we would experience Kwesta in his rap element again.
Outside of doing features, it is only now that we get to experience Kwesta back in his rap element whilst staying true to his roots, “Dlala Vilakazi” is a core representation of Kwesta’s growth in over the years from all these odd experiences to simply quiet moments focusing on family whilst gazing over the extension of Hip-Hop from the likes of Tony Dayimane, Usimamane, Kane Keid and many more. The single serves as a reminder to those who continuously slept on him that he is here to stay and will always be for Hip-Hop.
The music video which is shot by Ofentse Mwase details the era of “Speak N Vrostaan” in a more vivid and understandable visual manner, taking us back to the days of ‘Spirit‘ where we saw Kwesta showcase his love for K1. If you need to be reminded of who Kwesta is, then “Dlala Vilakazi” is the go-to song. I truly loved every moment of the visuals but mainly the listening experience as not only do you get to bop your head to the ear-grabbing beat but also you get to relax through the easing lyrics and sticky hook. I am truly proud to be an African at this moment as the music we continuously export to the world speaks back to how we want to retain the image of our culture and honestly, Hip-Hop couldn’t be in a better place. Hopefully, we can get a Hip-Hop project from uBab Vilakazi but for now, let us indulge in the art he has gifted us with.
Check Out “Dlala Vilakazi” below:
