The year is coming to a close which means and we’re back with another year-end list of our favourite music. 2022 saw the world start to properly re-open following multiple pandemic lockdowns and the musical floodgates came with it. If 2021 was breathless then 2022 was unrelenting in it’s release of music. From big mainstream acts to smaller and newer upstarts, the avalanche of music never stopped and we’re here to bring you some of our favourites in this 4 part series that will cover 100 songs released within the last year. We’ve searched far and wide to provide an eclectic list of choices that include our usual genres like Hip-Hop, Amapiano, R&B and Alternative as well as broadening our choices to more music within Jazz, Alté, Folk and Afrofusion. With choices from all across the African continent, these are some of our special highlights, Our Songs of 2022. You can read Part 1 here.

Usual Disclaimers: 1) For the purposes of this series we’ve kept the choices to one selection per artist in a leading role with the exception of work that’s credited in a group/collaborative body of work. We stress that these are personal favorites and not necessarily what we think are the most representative songs of the year. If an artist dropped both solo work and group/collaborative work in the same time span, we’ve counted each effort as separate, ie this consideration would apply to acts like Maglera Doe Boy & Monelle who both dropped solo music as well as collaborative tapes within the calendar year. 2) Only works that were released between December 1 2021 – November 25th 2022 were considered.

Group 2 [Listed alphabetically, not in ranking]

Cha Cha – Imani Basquiat [produced by Baitu]

Group 2 starts off loose with one of my favourite dance records of the year, a zesty club thumper from Pretorian newcomer Imani Basquiat, Cha Cha. Cha Cha is an unrelenting ball of fun that finds Basquiat and Baitu firing on all cylinders. Baitu lays the groundwork with a production so jiggy you can’t help but let your shoulders shimmy. Basquiat slides in like a sly Casanova telling us about this girl that turned him upside down before getting into the salacious details of their one night affair. Cha Cha is insidious with how many hooks it manages to cram on top of an already bouncy production that’s continuously taunting you to move. It’s filled with the type of swaggering attitude that early 2000’s dance battles were made for, think You Got Served and White Chicks. Cha Cha is a breathless hip-hop banger that makes you want to dance, flirt and get you freak on. It’s a breath of fresh air wily enough to not take itself too seriously whilst still being savvy enough to be memorable.

Digital Feedback – Daev Martian featuring Ndugu.Ndugu [produced by Daev Martian and Zain Vally]

Our next pick feels like walking into a futuristic jazz bar that’s playing the coolest music, Daev Martian’s Digital Feedback. The pioneering DJ and musician provided electro decadence with his recent body of work, Digital Feedback. It’s title track embodies that whilst adding a bit of seduction into that mix. Martian taps Ndugu.Ndugu for this suave piece of electro-jazz that finds Ndugu.Ndugu trying to decipher if a potential love interest wants him to make a move on her. Ndugu.Ndugu’s understated performance feels entrancing within this chilled production as he shows how adept he is at choosing his moments. His tonal switch at the end of the second verse is sublime line delivery as he devilishly announces: “Don’t sleep on me, this ain’t a lullaby… This ain’t a lullaby, I ain’t those other guys…” Digital Feedback is a really smooth groove executed by uber-cool dudes.

Dor Do Povo – Maglera Doe Boy featuring Ason [produced by MashBeatz]

Moving back into hip-hop, our next pick is a ruminative rap song from one of the genre’s contemporary trailblazers; Maglera’s Doe Boy’s Dor Do Povo. With a title that translates to Pain of The People, Dor Do Povo finds Maglera casually contemplating the value of life whilst existing within the wearing reality found within youth from the ghetto. Dor Do Povo is a bleak listening experience that is bolstered by a meditative Mashbeatz production invoking Western outback imagery. Maglera’s energy is wistful, bordering on despondent, with verses that feel more like unfiltered streams of consciousness as opposed to the more pointed performances his bombastic persona is known to curate for. Dor Do Povo is an unrestrained cry for attention from people who don’t feel valued by society and are hyperaware of that lack of care. Ason Leaux shines with his rallying call of a chorus, pained as he asks if you hopeless or even chosen in his acknowledgement of this despair. Dor Do Povo is a mounful wallow to very valid and ever-growing realities from one of South African hip-hop more theatrical and poetic voices.

Read more Maglera Doe Boy related content here, and MashBeatz here.

Listen to MashBeatz’s All That Yazz preview here.

Esselen Street – Blaklez & Pdot O featuring Bugzito & N’veigh [produced by SLICKWITIT]

Ao shapa tse pedi mpintjaka! Esselen Street is the first of multiple songs on this year’s list that pay homage to real-life places. The lead single from Blaklez & PDOT O’s Lost Diamonds II project blends hip-hop and Kwaito into a satisfying Pantsula anthem. Esselen Street is bustling with big city energy as Bugzito opens the song with a monologue about why he keeps a switchblade in his pants for protection when he’s roaming the streets. The track finds N’veigh, Blaklez & PDot O macking on women using Pitori’s street culture as their backdrop for adventure. These Pantsula are out here trying to show what can happen if you decide to chill with them for a while. Esselen Street is nostalgic and fresh as it pulls directly from Kwaito’s heyday whilst subtly referencing contemporary amapiano. These smooth talkers paint a vivid picture of the city’s chaotic energy. The energy is so infectious and vivid that I could smell the gasoline in the chorus with every fearless “Shapa tse psedi mpintjaka” refrain. Esselen Street is a confident banger swirling within South African hip-hop’s reemerging spring. Blaklez & Pdot O have quite a few in their entertaining collaborative album so if you’re yet to dive into that lost diamond let this be your intro.

Read more Blaklez related content here and Pdot O here.

Far Away – Gyakie [produced by iPappi]

Our next pick is a fervent love song fueled with enough bated energy to launch countless fairytale romance sequences. Gyakie swings for pop glory with the all-or-nothing proclamation of love that is Far Away. Far Away is a rose-tinted display of affection that finds the Ghanian chanteuse baring her soul over a smolderingly cozy reggae production. Gyakie’s explains how far she’s willing to go when love and her heart are at stake. She’s willing to fly to the ends of Earth if that’s what it takes to be with this man, but she’s also just as willing to flee far away to protect herself if he happens to break it. Far Away is infatuating. Gyakie sweeps you into the anxiety of an unsettled love and makes you yearn with her, as the smoldering saxophone and wide-eyed chorus make you want to stay. Far Away is the gooey open-hearted pop song that begs you to sing along it and I sing every time.

Goat Talk – DJ Sliqe, 25K & Maglera Doe Boy featuring MashBeatz, Saudi & Zingah [produced by DJ Sliqe & Kimishibeats]

When you have hip-hop powerhouses collaborate on a body of work called Champion Music you expect a couple of things; you expect colossal sound, you expect slick and disparaging banter, you expect grandeur; you expect Goat Talk. Found as the finale to DJ Sliqe, 25K & Maglera Doe Boy’s collaborative tape, Goat Talk is the boastful victory lap from people who know that they’re the sh*t. The brassy intro feels like it could seamlessly work as entrance music for wily wrestlers and boxers. Each of these rappers approach their verses with a varied level of bombast. Zingah is all attitude with the opening verse. He opens with an infectious flow so slinky that it makes you get loose just listening to it. Maglera is boomingly ravenous in his pursuit of money whilst 25K adopts a more reflective tone about his journey to success. All of this leads to a climax where Saudi not only carries the song’s hook but delivers the final verse. The streaming juggernaut flexes on the rarefied success his music has, with him still being one of the country’s top streaming acts despite not having released anything substantial in years. Goat Talk is the braggadocio you put on to get pumped up. It’s the feeling of currently being on top of the world.

Hate That I Love – Idahams featuring Xenia Manasseh [produced by Yussy Beats]

West Africa meets East in this Argentine tango of a duet between Idahams and Xenia Manasseh, Hate That I Love. Hate That I Love is a telenovela-esque ballad of lust, betrayal and bondage. The track’s theatrical intro sounds like a novela theme preparing you for the messy affair that Idahams and Manasseh throw you into. Idahams plays a man who decides to surprise his lover by inviting himself over with champagne only to find her already within the throes of passion with another man. He’s had suspicions of her philandering as he sings “When you post your sugar daddy, you gon’ block me: make I no see. Call you on video call, you no pick…” Despite this betrayal, Idahams’ heart won’t let him go as he declares how he hates that he loves her. Manasseh enthralls as she unapologetically fights back by detailing her perspective of their relationship. Hate That I Love is salacious, toxic and messy. Idahams and Manasseh sound great on this latin-pop laced production. Hate That I Love feels like an homage to telenovelas that all parties had great fun bringing to life and like a good telenovela, I might hate that I love it so much.

Read more Xenia Manasseh related content here.

Icy Water – Earldridge [produced by Arcane]

Earldridge shamelessly dives into infatuation with the breezy splash of pop that is Icy Water. Earldridge revels in the recklessly dizzying emotions that falling in love brings. Icy Water is a song that finds him chasing that feeling as he daydreams about moments he’s shared and wants to share with his girl. The essence of how he feels is found in the second verse as he sings: “I’m sorry that I’m a bit unrealistic, girl. Baby girl what’s a real life without some magic too… All the moments you feel alive and let the sparks fly…” Icy Water is refreshingly shameless pop music. It’s a feel-good production that has that summer feeling you want to playlist on long drives. Earldridge’s vocal is a giddily infectious magnet begging you to abandon sanity and join him in his whimsical daze of infatuation. Icy Water is pop escapism I have escaped to when I needed a pick me up, because as Earldridge asks: what’s life without some magic?

Just Fine – EASY FREAK featuring Jaedon Daniel [produced by Dominic Hurd & Jude Kenrick Ganasen]

Our streak of technicolor pop songs continues with a funk number from one of my favorite discoveries of this year, EASY FREAK. EASY FREAK are a duo of classic crooners that make groovy dance music; think Frankie Avalon, Smokey Robinson and Tony Bennett’s style of romanticism over disco aesthetics. Just Fine is an infectious song that does just that whilst delivering some of my favourite funk moments of the year. The song find them wanting to spend the evening getting to know a girl their utterly smitten by. It begins with them calling her to ask if they could talk for the night whilst building to a chorus that declares: “But if we kiss that would be just fine too. Oh how I wish to spend the night with you.” It’s simple, subtle and incredibly cheesy crooning that leaves you all warm and fuzzy. The magic in Just Fine for me is really how it musically builds itself from a coy starry-eyed quest to a dizzingly euphoric exclamation by the song’s breakdown. Jude Ganasen, Dominic Hurd and Jaedon Daniel capture a joy that’s trying so hard to contain itself but can’t, at least that’s how it makes me feel by the release of the final chorus. Just Fine is a pop record that whisks you into its romance as you think about that person that you just want to kiss.

RIP Jaedon Daniel.

Kancane – Konke & Musa Keys featuring Chley, Nkulee501 & Skroef28 [produced by Musa Keys & Nkulee501]

The upbeat love fest continues as we move to an infatuated amapiano banger that just wants to keep you close, Kancane. Kancane is a restless piece of dance music that’s constantly trying to reel you into its groove. The track is filled with so many hooks that calling it catchy almost feels like an understatement. Conceptually Kancane is a love song that finds Konke, Keys and company daydreaming about settling down as they pull their lovers closer. Musa Keys and Nkulee501’s production is soulfully mesmeric and continuously progressive in an effort to keep you moving whilst Konke and Chley shower your ears with an avalanche of sweet nothings. The result is a song that leaves an indelible impression on you on first listen that only becomes more insidious on repeat listens. Kancane is fun, slinky and flirty amapiano that you can really groove to. It’s a confident burst of energy that will draw you closer to the dancefloor.

Read more Musa Keys related content here.

Late – Slade featuring Sir Trill, Tycoon & Yumbs [produced by Slade]

Our next song is an absolute club banger that keeps us within the realms of amapiano with Slade’s Late. Slade, Tycoon and Yumbs collaborated to concoct this log-drum lead production that sounds like midnight and has a groove that knocks six ways from Sunday. Sir Trill is great fun as he prowls onto the song to set the scenery for this nightly groove before becoming a club Marshall by the turn of the chorus. Late is a boldly crafted banger that’s made to make you sweat on the dancefloor. It’s a solid amapiano song that cement’s Slade loud proclamation that it is indeed his turn and moment to flourish.

Mi Na We – Akoth Jumadi [produced by Akoth Jumadi]

Whilst on holiday, Akoth Jumadi gains a crush on a fairly popular local and starts fantasizing about spending quality time getting to know this alluring bachelor; that’s the premise of the dreamy slice of adult contemporary jazz that is Mi Na We. Mi Na We is a freeing mix of jazz, pop and folk that’s musically lead by nonchalant guitar picking and Jumadi’s soaring vocal. The song invokes wanderlust as you listen to Jumadi’s playful admiration of this man. Her vocal is a masterful display of range. From fluttery highs to carnal lows, Jumadi uses the song as a musical canvas to paint the various shades of colours that this man makes her feel. The result is this really content display of musicality and admiration that’s unashamed to have a good time regardless of a spectating audience. Mi Na We is a dazzling display of what this Kenyan chanteuse has to offer. It leaves you feeling exactly how she feels about this cool stranger, desiring for more.

Oddessy – WalterCanAutotune & TriggaNasty featuring Lwamii & Zango Kubheka

“You should come find me I think you should come find me…” Lwamii and Zango Khubeka are agents of emotional chaos in the fiendishly toxic piece of hip hop soul that is Oddessy [sic]. Found early in WalterCanAutoTune and TriggaNasty’s collective AMIS mixtape, their production is this yearningly pensive soundscape dripping with carnal energy. Oddessy finds Lwamii and Khubeka emotionally toying with women they’re currently in sexual relationships with, being purposefully distant until they crave sexual intimacy with them. Lyrically it’s terrible for the girls but this song is a jam. Lwamii allures with his “You should come find me” refrain. It’s peak R&B yearning that’s smartly used to lull how knowingly reckless these men are being with their pursuits. If you’re looking for toxic hip hop & R&B Oddessy delivers that in spades, it’s sensual, it’s deceptive and it’s scorching melancholy. Having come out last December, it’s one of the oldest songs I’ve been consistently listening to on this list and it still endures for me. It’s really promising storytelling from a group of young artists who are still yet fully flex on the depth of their artistry.

Pause – Monelle [produced by IORDN]

Found within her cautiously titled EP, Breathing Room, our next picks finds Monelle spiraling within her own thoughts looking for solid ground to hold on to. As mentioned within her top 21 placement on last year’s list; Monelle manages to package raw, alienating and often existential thoughts within really polished and comfortable sonics. Pause fits squarely into this canon as it finds her questioning her very existence whilst begging someone to give her a tethering point to stop the spiraling. “Give me a reason that I should stay. Give me a reason to spend another day. Give me a reason, say anything. Give me a reason, Give me a reason!” Backed by a soothingly light R&B production, Pause finds Monelle pondering on what it would take to pause the very invasive and sometimes contradictory thoughts pervading her mind. It is a deeply existential plea that also reads like a lover’s ultimatum for much needed attention. Monelle has fast become one of my favourite lyricists within the current rising tide of R&B singers. She has an uncanny ability of pulling you into the abyss with her because it looks like she’s frolicking there. Pause serves as a solid showcase of her poetic style of storytelling.

Read more Monelle related content here, IORDN here.

Listen to All That Yazz’s IORDN interview here.

Raincoat – LININ [produced by Jason Sibi-Okumu and Lucy Clearwater]

The next song feels like getting a warm hug and cup of cocoa whilst deep within autumn rain, Raincoat. Lucille Clearwater and Jason Sibi-Okumu’s debut as LININ is a heartwarming expression of philia love. Backed by a warm acoustic production, Clearwater’s poignant tone pierces through the track as she mentions how she’s noticed a major shift in her friend’s mood and temperament; she compares it to a deeply cloudy day where thunderous rain might be imminent. In noticing this tonal change LININ make the following declaration to said friend: “I wanna shelter you from the weather, darling, wherever you go. I’ll be your raincoat. A safe place to hide in the rainstorm…” Raincoat is a beautiful song about being there through someone’s highs & lows and allowing them to just be. The song is warm in how it feels and pours with sincerity right down to Okumu and Clearwater’s harmonies. It might be the most wholesome love song I’ve heard this year. It’s a song I rarely choose to play just once when I’m in the mood for it because of how warm it makes me feel. It really is a sonic raincoat.

Rush – Ayra Starr [produced by Andre Vibez & Hoops]

Ayra Starr experienced a groundbreaking level of commercial success with the release of 19 & Dangerous. Our pick is a stirring song from the album’s deluxe edition that gives a glimpse as to how she’s mentally responding to this massive change of pace, Rush. Rush finds a driven Starr focused on her grind, determined to build on the good fortune she’s experiencing. Backed by a propulsively soothing Afropop production, Rush is an anthem that captures the fantasy of upward mobility from someone currently experiencing it. Ayra Starr is passionate and resolute in this aspirational song that is brimming with self-belief. This song is a rush of motivation that you can use to keep you on your grind whilst celebrating the fact that you’re actually moving. Barely out of her adolescence Rush shows Ayra Starr as an artist ready to prove herself. When that passion is this infectious it’s really hard not to root for her to do so.

Some Nights I Dream of Doors – Obongjayar [produced by Barney Lister]

Our next song finds us dipping from confident aspirational Afropop to deep and suffering existentialism with Obongjayar’s Some Nights I Dream of Doors. Some Nights I Dream of Doors is an alt-soul ballad that finds Obongjayar at his wits end looking for a release from the paralysis he’s feeling from life. The song finds Obongjayar describing depressing feeling of suicide ideation and helplessness that he wants to escape or be saved from as he questions the meaning of life. He’s unsure of his ability to survive this state of mind. He’s pleading for help to save him from the alternative as he declares: “Save me, I’m dying… Save me, I’m losing this fight. Save me, I’m dying… trying my best to survive. No matter where I run. The ways lead me right back here. I think it’s time I stop running from myself.” Obongjayar’s soulful voice is aching and almost breaking over the tremblingly bleak production. His words are raw and unflinching as it feels like he’s fighting to stay alive but is suffering without a hopeful reason for being. Some Night I Dream of Doors is a ballad of depression that resonates within our rapidly devolving times. It’s a bold cry from a compellingly forthright artist that can make you weep in its reality.

Sondela – Venom & Shishiliza featuring Raspy, Yumbs, Blxckie, Riky Rick & Tshego [produced by Yumbs]

Our next song was an inescapable smash that serenaded South Africa for months, Sondela. Venom & Shishiliza’s Sondela is what I like to call soul food music; it’s cozy afro-pop with a simmering groove that just hits the spot. It doesn’t try to do too much because it already knows that the recipe works. This is a song that was made for lovers, for slow dancing and for weddings. The production and Raspy do a majority of the heavy lifting with Yumbs providing an intoxicating mid-tempo groove for Raspy to deliver their swooning refrains over. Blxckie and Tshego yearn in their verses when riding the groove whilst Riky Rick brings a pensively apologetic tone in his unexpected swan song that has only grown more melancholic after the fact. Sondela is a song about cherishing love, delivered by some of the savviest musicians within the crossover space. It’s dependable and it endures as a solid addition to South Africa’s canon of smooth love songs.

RIP Riky Rick

Read more Blxckie related content here, Riky Rick here & Tshego here.

Listen to Blxckie’s All That Yazz feature here.

Sosh Plata Remix – Loatinover Pounds featuring 25K & Thapelo Ghutra [produced by Loatinover Pounds]

Our next song finds us switching from veteran hitmakers to an anthem from one of South African hip-hop’s rising trailblazers, Loatinover Pounds. Loatinover Pounds is fast becoming one of my favourite rappers of a new generation growing into the space. Hood Misunderstood is a refreshing portrayal of a young adult who is still very much coming into themselves and unafraid to show it. Whilst Flower Seedz is arguably one of the finer portrayals of this chapter, and a solid song in its own right, our pick is the patriotic and vaunting Sosh Plata. The title of the song refers to a specific type of font customized number plate that is stylistically dominant within Pretoria. Sosh Plata is built on a sleek production brimming with enough elegance to give solid weight to Pounds’ central declaration that “Y’all n*ggas ain’t even got class like that gwa tshwana.” Sosh Plata is a portrayal of gangsta rap extravagance that finds Loatinover Pounds painting a picture of Pitori excess with the grime that comes with it. A danger so ever-present that the track has a subtle police siren circling within the back of this vivid soundscape. Thapelo Ghutra and 25K’s are capable scene partners that add more textual layers to the anthem’s remix. Sosh Plata is the second ode to a Pitori landmark, one that zones in on a younger and more restless perspective. It serves as a breakout moment from an incipient artist that’s gaining major steam. I’m excited to see where this goes for him but whilst we await his next chapter, Faka Punyete!

Read more 25K related content here.

Tekkers – Aylø [produced by Wasalu]

“Sensual, sex essential and I’m here to wreck it.” Our next pick finds us travelling back to Nigeria for one of the most hypnotic pieces of Alté I’ve heard this year, Tekkers. From its insistent bass to the tempo of the drums Tekkers already sounds like late night seduction before Aylø even steps on the track. Aylø sensually croons onto the track as he makes his plea for mutual sexual enjoyment with a girl that he’s deemed his temptress. Tekkers has an addictive groove that aims to keep you in the mood. It’s simple yet steamy foreplay from an artist who enjoys wielding sensuality in their pursuit of greatness.

The Oasis on Mbaazi Street – Lisa Oduor-Noah

The next song is a contemporary holiday standard waiting to happen, it’s the country-tinged ballad The Oasis on Mbaazi Street. Lisa Oduor-Noah is longing to return home for the holidays and all its comforts after having moved away to pursue her career ambitions. Backed by a pair of twanging acoustic guitars, The Oasis on Mbaazi Street is a classically intimate piece of country storytelling that really puts Oduor-Noah and her piercing vocal storytelling at centre stage. The song is a wistful listening experience that shines in it’s skillful simplicity. Each instrument takes its time in pulling you into the magic that Oduor-Noah wants to return to, as you long to return with her. Simply put, The Oasis on Mbaazi Street is a beautiful song that captures holiday longing and missing creature comforts. Artfully sung and skillfully played, it’s a solid song to consider adding to your Xmas playlists and for moments when you long for home.

Time to Time – Jason Sibi-Okumu [produced by Jason Sibi-Okumu]

“The crazy part of getting to grow older is taking stock of everything you lose…” Sometimes in life you need crying music. Tender songs for the days when you decide to dive deep into the abyss of melancholy and just stay there for a while. Time to Time is one of the songs that you play when you want to drown yourself in sentimentality as you weep. If you think I’m being dramatic, here’s the song’s opening line “Was just about to call you and then remembered, you’re probably haven’t missed me in a while. That’s alright, I’ll work on better timing. You’ve been on my mind…” Jason Sibi-Okumu is a contemporary troubadour who makes deeply introspective music that renders you tender. Time to Time is the introspective mourning of a lost love that his mind continuously wanders back to as he sinks into his sorrow. The production is bare and filled with enough open spaces for your own thoughts to pensively wallow in heartache right there with him. Time-to-Time is poetically written and dejectedly delivered, it’s a solid companion because we all needs to let tears flow from time to time.

werrkk – Blxckie featuring Mench [produced by Swerve]

Debauchery prevails as we switch gears to a twerking anthem by two cocky rappers reveling in sexual entertainment with werrkk. Blxckie has had an incredible 18 months cementing himself as a genre-fluid hitmaker outside of hip-hop, providing Afropop smashes like Kwenzekile, Sondela, and Sika. For a while his shortlisted pick for this list was going to be the soulful ngivelelwe; that was until he sounded the alarm with the fourth quarter release of this reckless trap banger. Coming in at 107 seconds, werrkk is a brusque but unrelenting rush of sexual braggadocio. Blxckie and Mench join forces to bring us into a boastful night of their sexual escapades which results in both of them finding women that will go to “werrkk: on them. werkk‘s propulsive “go, go to work; go, go to work” hook is so efficiently constructed that it’s used as a hype-inducing beat transition, its really one of my favourite things about this song. werkk is a fun piece of hip-hop bombast from two of South Africa’s most contemporary voices. It’s a well-crafted banger for your red-light escapades.

Read more Blxckie related content here. Listen to Blxckie’s All That Yazz feature here.

Workin’ On Me – FLVME featuring Ben September [produced by FLVME, ZWAYETOVEN & Kewand]

FLVME has cemented himself as one of the savviest voices within trapsoul, having created some of the most enduring songs from the genre in South Africa. Germander 2 was a return to form filled with some of the most indelibly catchy songs of his catalogue. One of the most resonant is a collaboration that finds the CandyMan pairing with the ever-brooding Ben September for an impassioned anthem in Workin’ On Me. Sitting on top of a repitched sample of Cordell Watts’ fuming 7 Nights Interlude, Workin’ On Me finds FLVME and September explaining their mental states after becoming estranged from their respective partners. FLVME is reeling as he describes a deteriorated relationship suffering from a lack of trust that has caused him deep anxiety. On the other side, September has become an insomniac throwing himself into work as a means of coping until his feelings subside. September is far more combative in a verse that details how he felt wronged by his ex during the course of their relationship. Workin’ On Me is an aching piece of trapsoul for when you’re picking up the pieces but aren’t yet whole. It’s a cathartic anthem that finds September at his current best whilst adding to FLVME’s sterling catalogue of enduring torchers.

Xola – Kabza De Small featuring Nobuhle, Ze2 & Young Stunna [produced by Kabza De Small]

Kabza De Small is one of a handful artists that has made our list every year since the list began in 2020. Our pick for this year finds The King of Amapiano tapping Nobuhle, Ze2 and Young Stunna for the ode to reconciliation that is Xola. Xola‘s production is a meditative groove. Kabza De Small has an incredible knack of imbuing a sense of spirituality into how his music feels even without lyrical context; and this track is brimming with it. Conceptually Xola finds Nobuhle and Young Stunna trying to come together after a serious rift that occured the night before. A pained Nobuhle approaches the song pleading for forgiveness, having not known what came over here within this altercation whilst Young Stunna wants to talk through the issue and find a resolution so that they can come back and be together. Xola is a song of reconciliation and trying to mutually work through inflicted pain. It’s an act of grace that comes from people who feel devoted to each other and want to remain that way.

Read more Kabza De Small related content here, Young Stunna here.

8 – Zulo featuring Money Badoo [produced by Zulo]

Money Badoo and Zulo are a cheeky ball fun in what is one of my favourite duets of the year, 8. Built on an interpolation of Luther Vandross’s Never Too Much, 8 is a flirtatious piece of pop-rap foreplay between Zulo and Badoo. Zulo is all cheese as he describes this girl that he’s feeling and actively chasing, and Badoo plays the cheekily receptive chasee. The song is incredibly simple and really lives in the personality and spice that Zulo and Money Badoo bring to the table. The chemistry fostered between the artist is infectious as they play and tease each other up. The explicit reimagining of Luther Vandross’s classic really works within this context as 8 is unabashedly silly. It’s a pop spectacle from two versatile hip-hop artists unafraid to be wildly cheesy and fun; that’s what makes it special.

Read more Money Badoo related content here.