{"id":67455,"date":"2020-12-14T11:43:55","date_gmt":"2020-12-14T10:43:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pan-african-music.com\/?p=67455"},"modified":"2021-09-10T17:17:43","modified_gmt":"2021-09-10T15:17:43","slug":"focalistic-sghubu-ses-excellent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pan-african-music.com\/en\/focalistic-sghubu-ses-excellent\/","title":{"rendered":"Focalistic\u2019s Sghubu Ses Excellent: a walk in the streets of South Africa"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Pretoria rapper had warned us with his tagline \u201case trap tse ke pina tsa ko kasi\u201d<\/em>: it\u2019s not trap, it\u2019s real ghetto music.<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Three years ago, Focalistic was still unknown to the general public. Presented to South Africa in 2018 by the duo Major League DJz and their Hip-Hop track \u201c19 Tobetsa\u201d, the rapper capitalized on this new attention with a multitude of EPs and singles to become one of the most promising artists on the national scene in a period of two years. His super-power? A formidable ability to blend rap with the latest electronic South African music. His meteoric rise gave him the nickname \u201cPitori Maradona\u201d (the Maradona of Pretoria); in 2020, with two new EPs and the huge hit \u201cKe Star\u201d, the ball was in his court. And he definitely scored with Sghubu Ses Excellent<\/em>. \u201cIt\u2019s a big step in my career. But it\u2019s not my debut album. My debut album will be released on international labels<\/em>\u201d, he tells us playfully. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSghubu Ses Excellent<\/em> is a statement\u201d, he continues. \u201cSghubu is traditionally music from the hood, made by people from the hood, only enjoyed from the hood\u2026 until recently. It is now commercially viable and we are doing it at its most excellent level. We are elevating the hood aesthetic<\/em>.\u201d In the hoods Focalitic is talking about, the most popular genres are indeed probably electronic South African music and rap. The artist has decided to not choose between his hip-hop background and what his people love by simply fusing both, rapping on the very trendy amapiano genre. \u201cAnd what makes me special is that I\u2019m doing it specifically in Sepitori<\/em>\u201d [Pretoria slang], he proudly adds. \u201cA lot of people always feel like you have to be from Durban, rubbing in Zulu, or you have to be doing it in English, and my whole thing was that I did it in Sepitori. That\u2019s what brings the vibrance\u201d. To be the best in rap and amapiano, the rapper has wisely chosen his collaborators, inviting national House giants (DJ Maphorisa, Kabza Da Small, Tyler ICU, Vigro Deep, JazziDisciples) and fierce rappers (Riky Rick, 25K) on the project: \u201cit was about finding the best songs with the different producers, that\u2019s why there are so many features<\/em>\u201d, he laughs. \u201cWorking with so many artists, it was all about shining the light onto everyone who is shaping that sound. You find DJ Maphorisa for example who has a rap verse and who made the beat on <\/em>\u2018In Your Mind\u2019.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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