Akanamali hitmaker interested in working with Han C
Spira Tlhankane | Friday June 29, 2018 14:54
“I have listened to Han C’s album, its really great and very good,” he told Arts & Culture in an interview before his show in Jwaneng last weekend. Sun El Musician said after listening to Han C he has realised that in Botswana artists are hindered by lack of marketing rather than the art. “The music is great, after listening to Han C, I can now see that the standard is great. Now it’s all about taking it there, they should work on marketing artists and getting their music out there,” he said.
Last year December, Akanamali which, featured vocalist, Samthing Soweto was a permanent fixture on radio, shebeens, living rooms and clubs alike and was even voted as song of the festive season.
Sun-El Musician said he credits the power of the Internet for making his song popular in Botswana. “It was crazy because I never thought a Zulu song would be sung in Botswana. I now wish I had a Tswana song in this album,” he said.
With his recently released full-length album, Africa to the World, Sun-El proves he’s capable of producing more hits. The album’s second single Bamthathile takes off where Akanamali left off and it is almost as popular as the latter.
What do you think about the fans in
Botswana compared to South Africa?
“The audience in Botswana has a way of showing pure love to performers on stage and I always love it here. People are singing along all the time and its not even their language, Akanamali and Bamthathile are Zulu songs, Sonini is a Xhosa so whenever I am here people sing along and it is so special for me. I have 13 songs in my album, I have done Akanamali and released Bamthathile, and now they can expect Sonini, that’s my latest single and it features Simmy and Lelo Kamau,” he said.
Sun El Musician said when making Sonini, they were trying to make a wedding song. He said they went through Platform One’s old songs to get an inspiration. “Wedding songs never get old, they are classics,” he said. In this album, he said he tried shunning big artists and working with unknown ones instead because it is easy to control them as they are still fresh and willing to learn. “You have never heard those names so that’s the whole meaning behind the project,” he said.
He said he was with Busi for six years as a DJ. “Travelling with her across Africa helped me to understand the genre. I thought in SA people listen to SA House, but in countries like Angola and Tanzania, I figured out the sound and was able to put the sound together,” he said.
In terms of the name of his genre, he said he has struggled but decided to call it African dance music. “That name doesn’t exist in these online platforms and they would rather call it electronic music. You blend different styles into one and that’s what I am doing.”
Sun El Musician said his performance depends on the occasion, so sometimes he does a DJ set alone and at times with vocalists. “Since I do not have a record label, I do bring vocalists I have signed with me.”