CrayOn’s quiet ambition

Sitting with Toro Tseleng in Gaborone, it becomes clear almost immediately that the Motswana artist, rapper and producer treats every song like a page in a diary. Born in Maunatlala and now based in the capital, “Art should leave evidence that you were here,” he says.

That evidence now stretches across tracks, photographs, videos and the quiet work of production he does. His path began with a birthday rap for a girl he liked. From a cousin’s laptop and headphones, he moved into studios, and by the time he was doing Form 3, he had already been signed to Altimate Frequency Music. The name CrayOn stuck because he has never been interested in creating in one colour.