Sthati tells his story
Spira Tlhankane | Thursday March 2, 2017 15:12
The 24-year-old year artist told Showbiz in an interview that he has catered for everyone in his album. “There is a gospel kwaito track as well as kwaito kwasa,” he said. Sthati said he recorded the album in different studios to get better quality in terms of production.
Real name Thatayaone Keaikitse, Sthati said he started music at an early age and has never stopped since. He said South African artists like Mzambiya and Msawawa who started doing music at an early age inspired him to begin his journey. He said because of school, parents and financial challenges, he was not able to push his passion during his boyhood stage.
After Sthati could not do well in his Junior Certificate examinations, that is when he continued his love for music fulltime. “I didn’t pass because I was so much focused into making music,” he said. He said he did not listen in class but rather wrote lyrics during school lessons. Sthati said he once recorded an unofficial single with his friend but it didn’t lead them anywhere and he ended up quitting for a while.
In 2015 Sthati decided to retrace his steps and found his calling once again and that is when he worked on the current album. He said the producer advised him to choose a marketable genre and kwaito was his first choice. Sthati said the music industry is challenging no wonder he uses social media to sell his music. “I give people my CDs for free as way of marketing and whenever I find a promotion I want to get involved,” he highlighted.
He said his parents did not help because they did not want him to take the music route. “I am unique because I sing Kwaito in Setswana and not in Zulu,” he said. Sthati said he called the album Kgang yame because he wanted to tell people his story. “I sampled the story of my life to people especially the youth period because I struggled as a result of failing and playing in school,” he said. Sthati said at the time he did not know that the music industry was not as easy as it seemed from a distance.