Moonchild Sanelly

Bio

Moonchild Sanelly was born Sanelisiwe Twisha in Gqeberha, then Port Elizabeth, into a musical house — her mother sang jazz — and moved to Durban in 2005 to study fashion design. Performing poetry and hip hop there from 2006, she distilled kwaito, gqom, punk and electronic pop into a genre she named herself: future ghetto funk, sung mostly in Xhosa beneath her trademark blue hair.

Her debut Rabulapha! (2015) earned a SAMA nomination for Best Alternative Album, and the international run came quickly: My Power on Beyoncé's The Lion King: The Gift (2019), a Gorillaz feature on Song Machine (2020), and a signing to Transgressive Records the same year. Phases (2022) broadened the palette; Full Moon, her third album, arrived in January 2025, followed by a UK and Ireland tour from March.

Verified facts

• Featured on 'My Power' from Beyoncé's The Lion King: The Gift (2019), alongside Busiswa and Nija.Wikipedia
• Featured on Gorillaz's Song Machine, Season One: Strange Timez (2020).Wikipedia
• Released her third album Full Moon in January 2025 on Transgressive Records, her second for the label since signing in 2020.The Arts Desk
• Her debut album Rabulapha! (2015) was nominated for Best Alternative Album at the 22nd South African Music Awards.Wikipedia
• Began performing in 2006 in Durban and coined the self-described genre 'future ghetto funk'.Wikipedia
• Born Sanelisiwe Twisha in Port Elizabeth; her mother was a jazz singer, and she moved to Durban in 2005 to study fashion design.Wikipedia
• Sings mostly in Xhosa and is recognised for her signature blue hair.Wikipedia
• Toured the UK and Ireland from March 2025 in support of Full Moon, opening in Manchester.Wikipedia

Notable work

• Full Moon (2025)
• Phases (2022)
• Rabulapha! (2015)
• My Power (with Beyoncé, Busiswa & Nija, 2019)

Categories

Music & Links