HOLA KAU: A Tribute To The Street Sound Of Zola, Soweto

Sawubona. As a kid when watching television, I used to think it was impossible to be so deep in thought, that you fill a cup with tea until it overflows. That was until I hit the age of 30.

I also used to think it was impossible to put street and sweet together. That was until I opened up to Bopha Blackman’s debut EP, Hola Kau.

Some music asks you to listen. Hola Kau demands you feel. This is an EP that bursts with emotion and melody. With Bopha in command of his voice and beat. A coming together of Kasi Rap and African rhythm, to give birth to what Bopha calls “Spharaphara”

Across four tracks, his debut EP moves with the energy of someone who has spent years behind the drum kit, feeling rhythm not just in his ears but in his bones. This is music made by hands that have gripped sticks, struck skins, and learned that silence is just another beat waiting to drop.

For many of us who have known Bopha Blackman as only a drummer, it was not even hard to find his rapping believable. It didn’t seem like just another musician trying to prove how different he can be. The Rapper-Drummer combo made sense not only as a concept, but also as an act.

 Lyrically, Hola Kau is a season long waited for. The words are raw, poetic, and bold — statements from someone tailor chosen to push the sound. His isiZulu flows carry the weight of oral tradition while remaining contemporary.

The beats are not just background; they are conversation partners, responding to every vocal line, every pause, every moment of tension. Bopha’s training as a drummer reveals itself in the way his flows lock into pocket, the way the beats breathe, the way silence is used as deliberately as sound. This is the work of a versatile session drummer — a musician equally at home in Jazz, Rock, or any genre the kit can speak — bringing that same sensitivity to his own compositions.

Baningi

Composer: Bopha Blackman AFM
Producer: Gift Nkosi

“Baningi, abazoba ne-kwaal, ngoba ngikwaze uk’thath’ ithalente ngal’phendul’ ispani!”
[There are many who will have a problem, because I could take talent and turn it into work]

The common narrative in the township is that talent, especially that of an artistic nature; cannot be real work— and those who prove this wrong, are somehow usually outcasts one way or another.

In the song, the poet opens the EP by narrating the troubles music artists face within the industry, the awkward tension between gift and survival.

What Bopha Blackman has to say about the song is: “Baningi is about the crowd, the many voices that shape me… It captures that kasi chaos and unity, turning everyday life into an anthem. But most importantly, how people react to independence.”

Impilo (feat. Bongani “Dagga” Buthelezi, Muzwakhe “Meropa Soul” Mabizela & Mthokozisi “Sthokzo Shevu Poison” Gumede)

Composer: Bopha Blackman AFM
Producer: Bonginkosi “Sequal” Mkhize

Impilo is a table of breaking bread about just that: Life. Bopha being Bopha, this one opens with a guitar reminiscent of the early 2000s Rock sound that pulled many of us into that Rock space — before he jumps in with that raw Zola thing that can only be done by Zola babies.

“…a reminder of survival, gratitude, and growth,” Blackman says about the song. “This track blends Afro-rap melodies with township soul, layering harmonies to tell the story of resilience. It’s about living through the noise and still finding rhythm in the struggle.”

It comes with a soulful but street hook. A forget-me-not hook in a very Mzansi way. The verses pull up with flows meant for a pre-work or work out playlist — music that moves the body while the mind catches the bars.

A coming together of voices who in their own right are growing in power, while still empowering the listener.

Sunrise to Sunset

Composer: Bopha Blackman AFM
Producer: Monde “Stove Gamede” Nqeza

“Alikho iphuph’elincane / Alikh’iphupho el’khulu”
[No dream is too small, no dream is too big]

The track opens with simple words that serve as a reminder that when one believes in themselves, the size of the dream becomes irrelevant.

“This is the reflection track,” Bopha says. “A calm between the storms. Sunrise to Sunset speaks to the daily grind, chasing dreams while holding purpose.”

A very chilled mood, without wanting to drop names, I think you can identify a whiff of Zola music OGs in this one.

“The beat rides smooth with mellow keys and Afro-centric inclusion, setting the tone for introspection. It is where the poet and the rapper meet — a moment of breath before the next hustle.” Bopha said.

A reminder to “Follow your heart and not the moving shadows…”

Mabathule

Composer: Bopha Blackman AFM
Producer: Lunga “Tony Twelf” Maliti

We will never forget what the air of Zola did for Mzansi’s music through Kwaito. Mnumzane Mduduzi “Mandoza” Shabalala? Mnumzane Sandile “Mapaputsi” Ngwenya? Mnumzane Nkosinathi “Mzambiya” Zwane? And many others.

Remember also how that same air that rose from the breath of Zola, made its way to Rap music through cats who could not stop but cough a diagnosis of Kwaito in their spit. I’m still not sure whether the almighty mnumzane Bonginkosi “Zola” Dlamini is Kwaito, Hip Hop, or genre of his own that should be just called Zola!.  

Now that very breath, has found its way to us through Bopha Blackman AFM.

“Mabathule carries the Kwaito attitude — bold, grounded, and unmistakably Soweto… This is kasi rap reborn.” Bopha said about the song.

As it should be. Sounds don’t die; they evolve. They live through the rhythm and style of those who carry them forward.

CLOSING

Hola Kau announces Bopha Blackman AFM as a voice worth following. Across four tracks, he demonstrates range, depth, and a rhythmic intelligence that sets him apart from his peers.

“The EP is 100% ekasi-made — composed, arranged, recorded, and produced in Soweto, giving it authenticity and township soul,”* Bopha said. “It’s positioned not just as music, but as a movement — a soundtrack to community, resistance, and cultural identity.”

Usually, some session musicians get stuck in the role of being just a session musician -no disrespect for their choice. But after years of sticking and chopping, he has put in the work to say Hola Kau.

With national tour dates ahead and institutional support from both the SAMRO Music Creation Fund and the Business and Arts South Africa (BASA) grant behind him, Bopha is poised to carry the Spharaphara sound far beyond the streets of Soweto.

Quick Facts

Support The Artist

To check out and buy the EP, click on HOLA KAU