By Khaya Ndaba
Mixing gospel, kwaito, hip-hop and drill into one genre of music might seem like mission impossible, but not for the Nubians.
The group, consisting of Nubian Phoenix, real name Lungelo Gololo and Nubian Flow, real name Kgomotso Nkhuna, was founded in 2015. The two teenagers, originally from Zabediela in Limpopo, found a studio to do their first recording and experiment with their unique sound.
“We were introduced by a mutual friend. We got to know each other and did a project called Connect. People received it quite well and we never looked back from then on,” said Lungelo.
Because they were so young, their families weren’t that happy with it.
“It was difficult to start, especially explaining to my parents that I wanted to be a musician,” Kgomotso said.
“That was a hard pill for them to swallow because they wanted me to go to school and further my studies.”
But they convinced them of their passion and to this day they have their full support.
The Nubians’ upcoming EP fuses genres from the ZCC gospel music with new-age kwaito and afro drill.
They also use African native languages in their songs to tell their story through a unique combination of contemporary rhythms and traditional soundscapes.
Their critically acclaimed songs ‘Tsholla Dikeledi’ and ‘Heke’ have been making the rounds on the airwaves and have even trended on TikTok.
So far they have made songs with Leo Magozz, and the legendary SiTshonga Disco artist Dr-Joe Shirimani for their upcoming EP that will be released in February 2023.
Pictured above: The Nubians
Image source: Supplied
