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HIP HOP PANTSULAYBA 2 NW |
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tracklisting 01 . Lefatshe je |
Cast around the South African hip hop scene for the artist most likely not to have beef with anyone and you can be sure that Hip Hop Pantsula's name will emerge from the ever-growing list of MCs, lyricists and beatmakers. Which is not to say that double H P is not capable of making music that stands shoulder-to-shoulder with the genre's finest. Far from it: As his just released YBA 2NW showcases, HHP remains on-form, delivering an album of seriously funky grooves, clever samples (check out the Burt Bacharach/Hal David sample on “Let Me Be”) and enough beat-driven hooks to keep the hits flowing all summer long. |
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Album IN STORES NOW! Featured Acts: Crew: 3 Kings Related Articles |
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Hip Hop Pantsula – YBA 2 NWHeadline single is “Jabba” featuring Nkanyiso, a Tavares-influenced cut (all organ-swirls and disco beats) that's already slashing a path to the top of radio playlists – and that's just the start of HHP's latest musical journey. Let's be honest: Only HHP could open a thoroughly urban album with an acapella Gospel track, featuring handclaps and deep male vocals. And trust him to come up with a slew of songs, among them “Built This City” featuring Lekoko, that combine solid hooks with conscious lyrics. “I look around and see the success of groups like Freshlyground and other international acts and it's clear to me that people are looking for quality music and that is what I am delivering on the album,” HHP explains. Don't however think that HHP is all about issues. Like a famous UK teenager opera singer turned pop star says, issues go with tissues and there are several moving love songs (we're not kidding, listen to “Love of my Lewe” featuring Proverb and Lois of Afro-Z fame) on the album that reveal an artist capable of delivering on any style. “The fact is that it's hard to pinpoint my style,” HHP admits. “I don't just do hip-hop, I don't just do kwaito but if I come up more on either of these sides then people say ‘hey he's that kind of artist'.” One thing's for sure: this music trailblazer has always done things his own way – a skill he absorbed way back in 1999 when Introduction was unleashed on an unsuspecting music public. At that time, HHP was one of just a handful of hip-hop influenced artists to actually make it into the recording studio and ink a deal with a big-name record company, in this case CCP. Introduction was followed by Maftown, which hit the marked in 2001 and then 2003's O Mang. The latter proved to be a strange animal. On its first release it made little impact on the market (there's a long story about HHP's Babyphat Record Company and internal wranglings with an ex-employee to go with O Mang's initial diluted impact on the scene but it's really not important now). But a re-release of the album, under the title O Mang Reloaded, in 2004 changed all that and this past year has seen HHP seriously impact the airwaves with “Tswaka” and “Harambe”. Throughout this musical journey, which began when HHP was a kid in Mafekeng, there have been nominations and awards including a SA Music Award nomination for Best Newcomer in 2000, and, more recently, being named Favourite Male Artist a the Star In You Kids Awards. What's more HHP's lyrical gifts have seen him collaborate with a who's who of South African music, including a star spot on Slikour's Ventilation Mixtape Vol. 1, collaborating with Unathi on the track “U Make Me Happy” and appearing on the Coca-Cola Collaborations on “But I'm Free” with Tumi, Zoe and SK. HHP also turns up on Thembisile's self-titled debut, on the track “Isikhathi Senjabulo”. HHP describes the collaborative process as one that turns him into a better artist. “Every time I work with another artist I hone my skills. I am always watching how other people work in the studio, what techniques they use, it's an amazing way to work and I love the respect we have between different artists.” On YBA 2 NW (a reference to the North West province he hails from and a metaphor for music being his vehicle), double H P has plenty of creative comrades helping up his game. Aside from Nkanyiso, Lekoko, Proverb and Lois, there are cameos from Tuks, Uhuru, Kea, ShugaSmax, Maxhoba and others. The inclusion of these artists has, says HHP, turned the album into his best ever. “You know with the others, as good as they were, there was always something I thought I could do better. But YBA 2 NW is just right. I love it. People who get it are in for a treat – it's really, really good.” |
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