Sawubona.
After the release of his third EP Injabulo, I got to catch up with the brother Safe Energy. We talked music, legends and his EP.
If you had to describe what you do to someone who has never heard your music before, in three sentences or less, what would you say?
I’ve seen and heard people cry, get goosebumps, and say this type of music is Soul, I make them feel the presence of a higher being.
What is the hardest lesson you have learned since you started putting music out with your first EP, Sophumelela?
That ultimately you’re on your own. Ýou’re the one who has to take yourself out there to the masses.
You opened for the icon Dr. Madala Kunene in 2023, at Curiosity Backpackers in Johannesburg. Did that have an impact in you? If yes, how?
Yes, funny story…he’s married to a Hadebe, so we clicked from the get go. Yes it impacted me because he said to me, “I like the style you’re playing, don’t stop, keep it up, one day you’ll do your own one man concert”.
You call yourself a “songdreamer” — which you describe as “balancing what’s happening when asleep, when awake.” Can you walk us through how a song comes to you? Do you literally dream them?
OK. A bit scatter brained it occurs, I hear melodies and a certain train of rhythm. It’s not literal and direct, sometimes I see myself performing those songs in school. Take Khanya Phezulu for example; there were people dressed in white and blue that were singing it. Sometimes I gather a congregation and I’m leading these songs. It’s like holding a sermon, Ukushumayela. There’s a proverb that says “My son, listen to my orders and pay attention to gain understanding.” [Proverbs 4:1]
You’ve cited Dr. Phillip Tabane as an influence — particularly his Malombo sound. On the title track Injabulo, there’s a moment where you make a “zz, zz, zz…”, that something like it appears on Dr.Tabane’s “Mae Kutlo,” and other tunes. Was that a conscious tribute, or did it just come out?
Well I study Dr.Phillip Tabane. A lot. So I’ve found my expressions through his linear. I think it’s a tribute and it randomly happens on any song, not on Injabulo particularly –when I get into a trance/free state I explode and go zzzzzz as the bees.
Some of the songs on Injabulo EP — like Izulu, Mazulu, Khanya Phezulu — appeared earlier on your 2024 EP Emazulwini. What made you make this decision? And what changed in you and in the songs between then, and now?
Growth, always yearning for growth! Funny thing is when I really tap in the spirit, these songs cry and sort of heal a certain trigger. So it’s a cycling process type of thing, the more I do it, the more it improves. A calling always transcends into novelty.
Who is a living South African artist you have not worked with yet but would love to share a stage or a studio with?
Sibusile Xaba. Dumama. Sjava. Muzi.
What is one thing you wish reviewers understood about your music that they often miss?
People’s listening or attention span has decreased, so with the same touch in spirit they’ll eventually accept its landing. We are planting known seeds. We, the people, are remembering.
You are a postgraduate in Journalism and Media. How does that training — the ability to record, define, and shape the times — show up in your music?
Journalism taught me to be brief and punchy, also that I’m an anchor of something far bigger than a quick read or bulletin. I’m using this journalistic tool to be the voice. A song known from Embo.
You’ve said your message as a musician is to “liberate the spirit and heal the audience listening through song.” What does healing sound like to you? And have you ever experienced that healing yourself while performing?
Yes. People cry, get realisations. It’s like an open consultation. Stripping down flashy things to reach the true issues of humanity. I’ve heard people say, “it’s like I’m under a spell when I play the guitar”.
What is something about the South African music industry right now that frustrates you? And what gives you hope about it?
Well I’m not frustrated, I just feel like sometimes there’s deliberate gate keeping. People giving their friends two minutes to shine. [But] I am hopeful about the message and the business of music, it’s improving and alerting.
You believe your gifts are meant to return to the creator “as creative, vulnerable, and honest as they should be.” What does that look like in practice, on a Tuesday afternoon in Soweto, when no one is watching?
I plug in my instruments, have a few whiffs of weed. Then let the music take me. You see…its a prayer, similar to someone who’s give a sermon. I’ve heard that I might be a priest or bishop, I do that in the prayer of music.
If you could sit down with a younger version of yourself — maybe the 17-year-old writing rap lyrics — what would you tell him about becoming a musician?
Know and understand the business of music. Take care of this music.
In 2024, you were a Top 4 finalist at The Gauteng Live Project. How did that experience change things for you — if at all?
Well that was a surprise, I was at a salon with a friend from Mozambique minding my own business, then Nicky B and Paul Mnisi called to congratulate me. That experience Made people take me serious.
What does success look like for you, not in awards or streams, but in a deeper, quieter sense?Understanding yourself, fixing and realignment. Trust yourself.