Alvhin Adendorff
Amapiano, the most popular dance sound in South Africa, is spreading its wings and being embraced outside of the country, particularly in Europe.
As the genre expands its reach the participants include more people who are not South African. The UK in particular has a growing number of amapiano DJs and producers who are spreading the sound.
This rapidly shifting dynamic leaves South African amapiano artists in an interesting position. They may benefit from the genre’s growth beyond South Africa, but also risk being sidelined.
To see how this might go it is useful to look at the history of dubstep. When this British genre first appeared in the early 2000s, it was fairly limited to a scene of DJs and producers from the South London area.
At the time, distribution of music via the internet was coming into its own and the growth and spread of the sound was unprecedented. In a short span of time dubstep morphed into a more festival friendly style associated with large events in the USA.
The most high-profile artists in the genre were no longer from the UK, rather names like Skrillex, Datsik, and Bassnectar became synonymous with dubstep. The sound in its most popular form became separated from its origins.
It is possible that this is what happens to amapiano and it would be a shame if the originators of the genre end up being isolated from it as a result of its success.
When we look back at pre-internet genres like Reggae or Hip-Hop the originators from Jamaica and the USA maintain a sense of cultural ownership. To what extent financial ownership was equitable, especially in the case of Jamaican artists, is a matter for debate.
In modern times genres shift location with alarming speed. As a recent example, the early 2010s Chicago drill rap sound transplanted itself to the UK where it merged with bass heavy production styles to form UK drill.
In almost no time, UK drill found its way back across the Atlantic with rappers like Pop Smoke pushing the New York drill sound, often using UK producers.
Do South African artists have the cultural capital and business nuance to maintain some ownership of this genre? Is it possible or even wise to try to maintain ownership of a sound in the modern musical environment? These are the questions that amapiano originators will need to consider as the world embraces their music.
Image source: @AmaPianoSA
