Vusumzi Nkomo
The movement of Africans throughout the African continent predates the colonial capture of our Black/ened bodies, territory and, ultimately, imagination. The violent erection of rigid borders is a recent phenomenon perpetuated for the sole purpose of restricting the movement of African people, further undermining, that is to say erasing, the longstanding tradition/s of cultural exchange and rich dialogues in the continent and their infinite possibilities.
Foreighn, and his work, represents these possibilities in the 21st century, and particularly so, in post-94 South Africa with all its immense contradictions. His movement, spread across at least 3 countries in Southern Africa, is a def indicator of a contribution he is to make to the canon of contemporary African creative-musical genius.
The 22 year old, born in Zimbabwe and grew up in Botswana (since the age of 4) with his two other siblings (a 17 year old sister, 9 year old brother), has been living and working in Cape Town for the past two years. Upon finishing High school he went to study Medicine in China, a dream he says he hasn’t given up on. “The mine where my father worked closed, and in those situations there isn’t much you can do, you know. You have to find an alternative way,” he tells me. What followed was a tricky financial situation where he had to ‘take one for the team’, so to speak, and move back home after his father lost a job of 17 years. Having started experimenting with music in University, it was this “hobby” that saved him from drowning in endless, and often fruitless, pool of questions: “I’ve done everything right; why is this happening to me?”
“I fell onto music…”
“By identity, I identify as Botswana. Yeah I’m Zimbabwean by citizenship, but I was raised in Botswana; ke Motswana,” he says. Though he strongly feels that way, he also insists that he will always be/feel ‘Foreign’; “I am Shona by origin, but because I was raised the way I was raised, when I go back to Shona people, my people, I’m foreign- I have a foreign way of speaking, of communicating, a foreign way of doing things.” His experiences, accumulated in the two decades of his existence, affords him various perspectives but also allows him to deeply appreciate who & what he is.
“Growing up man was unusual and exciting. When we moved to Botswana it was strange and we had to adjust and I was fortunate to meet people, brothers, who loved me regardless,” says the family orientated rapper. Though he never grew up depressed and lonely, he laments at the fact that there was a lot of discrimination: “You don’t initially understand where the backlash is from as a kid, you really don’t understand man because you are a kid. When kids are calling you names, calling you kwerekwere, and you don’t understand why they doing it.” His mother would comfort him, “these are kids as well,” he adds, “they repeat things they were taught.” The only antidote, it felt to him at the time, was to work hard and silence the hate and this felt like a normal thing to do.
The Genesis & Reception
“By far, I think my biggest fans are my family. But the biggest is my dad bro and that’s dope because my life I grew up wanting to show this nigga that I’m somebody to be proud of. It’s dope man, you get them singing the lyrics to the songs,” he adds joyfully and with glitter in his eyes. His father’s engagement with his work motivates him to ‘push’.
His earliest influences in music was the church, like most Black artists across Africa and the diaspora. The major hip hop influences were not the staples, B.I.G and 2pac, but Hip Hop Pantsula, ‘Jabba’. “In Botswana, people took him as one of us. People don’t realise his impact! He was the coolest thing and I used to rap his songs. And I loved Michael Buble, he was like our Frank Sinatra.” This was a different sonic sensibility; a more soothing and vulnerability sound that he fell in love with and was recognised as a “mini-Michael Buble” at some point.
A few years later, he describes his sound as a jazzy hip hop, “Trap Soul”, which allows him to sing and to rap. But this vision has met a lot of resistance from people, due to the commercial pressures of sounding similar to the dominant Trap. “But the whole thing of being a pioneer is that you got to stand out, though no one will fuck with you at first, but people will catch on.”
Botswana
“I think it’s an interest moment for Botswana music right now, it’s growing.” Even though Botswana people are a cultured people, he says, hip hop is slowing gaining ground which acts such as BanT “doing the most”, pushing the envelope in the midst of a growing presence of big South African artists including Cassper, A Reece, Nasty C. “It’s buzzing man! It’s poppin’ and it’s about to be special”.
I think it’s an interest moment for Botswana music right now, it’s growing
“If you jump on a wave, it must be your wave, don’t compromise your thing so you can jump on a wave.” But, he cautions, this doesn’t mean that African artists across the continent must not connect-link up. After teaming up with his current management, he launched his music with an EP on his birthday in 2018 composed of 3 songs with over a 100 plays. “I have so much work man. So I was depressed hence I was working like a machine.”
This is the same young man who has been putting out a song every Friday. The commitment and discipline is commendable. The creativity is cranium-cracking. And this marks the beginning of a very exciting career and it would be criminal to ignore.
Connect with him:
IG: foreighn97
Website: foreighn97.wixsite.com/website
SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/foreighn97
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