Musical collaborators call for Alex’s attention
Two local artists worked together towards the release of Attention – an extended playlist fusing the best of two worlds that synergise well.
The life of an artist isn’t easy, and the choice to follow the path of artistic pursuits is one often filled with challenges. Local artist Mohau Prince Mbatha (Prince Mercy) and collaborator Arthur Masuku (Tiizo) reflected on how their project first began.
Read more: Alex’s Prince Mercy shakes up the music scene with his EP
“We realised that we’re interested in similar genres, so we came up with this idea of collaborating to give our fans a project with two different [but similar] feels, with the approach of catering for different audiences in one project,” Mbatha said.
Masuku affirmed, “We simply wanted to gain people’s ears and attention by doing something very different from other rappers, and mixing all sorts of sounds in a single project.”
The musical duo mainly makes hip-hop music, which they blend with accommodating genres such as rap and RnB. The pair’s extended playlist (EP), Attention, dropped at the end of January, and aims at inspiring the audience to never give up, and to always strive for greatness.
“This EP project focuses on challenges we face in life, yet still manage to come out at the top – which makes people wonder how we do it,” said Mbatha.
Also read: Prince Mercy releases mixtape: Gomora Trap, aiming to sooth those in despair
Masuku and Mbatha both lamented over the struggle to get their music heard, and trying to get more numbers in terms of listeners and content viewers. They cited gatekeeping in the industry, unpaid gigs (and dropping gigging opportunities) and the disrespect which comes with not being famous, obstacles that they’re both working on overcoming. This prompted the pair to work together on closing the gap between themselves and success.
“We started putting this EP together a year ago when we realised our styles are very complementary,” Masuku said. “Together, with our minds combined, we are the bomb.”
Mbatha expressed how his collaboration with Masuku also stood to offer something different to their community.
“Over the years, people have been tunnel visioned by amapiano to the extent that other genres started to suffer,” said Mbatha. “We want to show audiences how powerful our sound is and that we can coexist with amapiano artists at the same time, while they enjoy what we have to offer.”
Over the years, both musicians have seized all the opportunities they could towards getting their music out into the world. Masuku, celebrating having once won R20 000 in a music competition, said he dabbled in photography when he wasn’t making music. Mbatha said if he were not making music, he would be focused on becoming a professional soccer player.
The duo have performed at the Gomora Carnival as supporting acts, the MasterClass Podcast, New Wave Festival, and the Alex Mall talent show.
The pair appeal to Alex for support in the form of streaming their music, attending the shows they perform in, and booking them for events.
“Simply invest in us,” said Mbatha.
“Give us a shot and help us grow by spreading our music to all the people you know,” Masuku said.
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