Official 2024 release photograph: Apple Music Sessions: Nasty C — Apple Music
Nasty C is the rap name of Nsikayesizwe David Junior Ngcobo, born in Diepkloof, Soweto in 1997 and raised in Durban, where an older brother taught him the basics of production at nine. He released his first mixtape at fourteen, and the 2015 single Juice Back — later remixed with Davido and Cassper Nyovest — announced a technician's ear: quick, melodic verses that sit as comfortably over trap as over soul samples.
Named Best Freshman at the 2015 South African Hip Hop Awards, he has since released five albums, from Bad Hair (2016) to Free (2025), through his own Tall Racks Records with Def Jam Africa. Zulu Man with Some Power took Best Hip Hop Album at the 2021 SAMAs alongside an MTV Africa award, and I Love It Here carried him onto an international tour that opened in Paris in October 2024.
“Ibandla” was already a Top 3 Apple Music hit. Then Nasty C’s reinterpretation crossed one million YouTube views. When the official remix followed, it felt less like a manufactured extension than a version listeners had already asked to hear.
For years, Rowlene could become the emotional centre of somebody else’s song without owning the headline. With Some Strings Attached, a major international spotlight and an upcoming Johannesburg album launch, that balance is beginning to shift.
Basha Uhuru’s 2026 edition turns Youth Month memory into something practical: music, workshops, market access, creative-economy platforms and paid opportunities for young people.
“Big Timing” sounds like luxury on the surface, but underneath it is really about something deeper: survival, loyalty and the rare creative brotherhood that lasts after success arrives.
SAMA32’s shortlist shows a South African music industry no longer defined by one centre. From Durban Gqom to Maskandi, Amapiano, Jazz, Gospel and regional scenes, the country’s sound is spreading power across many hubs.
Lordkez’s On The Radar performance of “Think Twice” shows South African alternative R&B crossing into a major New York platform without disguising itself as another global trend.
Sickluv and Dominic Neill’s “Flowers Bloom” connects the Garden Route, Berlin and Los Angeles, showing how South African music can move globally without losing its sense of home.
Nasty C is billed on the Phase 1 line-up of Oscar Mbo's Grxxvy Escape day festival at The River Cabin in Fourways, alongside Dlala Thukzin. Gates 14:00, no under-18s; earlier ticket phases have sold out.
Dlala Thukzin is named on the Phase 1 line-up of Oscar Mbo's Grxxvy Escape at The River Cabin, Fourways, with Nasty C. Gates 14:00, no under-18s.
Oscar Mbo headlines his own Grxxvy Escape day festival at The River Cabin in Fourways, with Nasty C and Dlala Thukzin on the announced Phase 1 line-up and further phases still to be revealed. Runs 14:00 to 00:01, no under-18s; VIP tables from R20,000.
Mörda appears on the billed lineup for the Johannesburg edition of Grxxvy Escape, a 14:00-to-midnight day party at The River Cabin in Fourways. Tickets are on sale via Quicket (Super Early Bird R320 and Early Bird R390 sold out; General P1 R450, General P2 R550, Late Bird R650). Note: the official Quicket page still lists Phase 2 and 3 artists as to be announced, so Mörda's set is billed on listings rather than the promoter's own lineup graphic.
Amanda Black is billed among the headliners for the Jozi edition of the Kota Festival, themed EZASE MZANSI: iDiski, running 10:00 until midnight at the Johannesburg Expo Centre in Nasrec. Tickets went on sale on 3 August 2026 through Computicket BoxOffice; headliners are still being rolled out on the festival's official channels.
Emtee is named among the headliners announced for the Jozi Kota Festival, themed EZASE MZANSI: iDiski, running 10:00 until midnight at the Johannesburg Expo Centre in Nasrec. Tickets went on sale 3 August 2026 via Computicket BoxOffice.
A-Reece is billed among the headliners announced for the Jozi Kota Festival, themed EZASE MZANSI: iDiski, at the Johannesburg Expo Centre in Nasrec from 10:00 until midnight. Tickets went on sale 3 August 2026 through Computicket BoxOffice.
