Samkelo Lelethu Mdolomba (born 21 January 1988), known professionally as Samthing Soweto, is a South African singer and songwriter.[1][2] Samthing is best known for his vocals on Sun-El Musician's song "Akanamali" and his number 1 single on spotify "Akulaleki".
Samthing Soweto | |
|---|---|
| Born | Samkelo Lelethu Mdolomba 21 January 1988 Soweto, Johannesburg, South Africa |
| Occupation |
|
| Musical career | |
| Genres | |
| Instrument | Vocals |
| Years active | 1989–present |
| Labels | Independent |
| Website | www |
Following his departure of the group The Soil, Mdolomba released his debut album, This N That Without Tempo (2010), which fuses a capella and soul. He then departed from his debut album's sound as he introduced fusions of Afro pop, and R&B for his second album, Isphithiphithi (2019), which became certified platinum by the Recording Industry of South Africa RiSA.[3]
Life and career
editEarly life
editSamkelo Lelethu Mdolomba was born and raised in Protea North, Soweto, a township of Johannesburg, South Africa.[1] He is the third of four children, who were all raised by his single mother.[1] Mdolomba was moved to his grandmother in the Eastern Cape, but was later moved back to Protea North caused by substandard issues.[1] In an interview with The Best T in The city, he said, "She [his mother] thought maybe an upbringing in the EC would benefit me but it didn’t. I lost weight, not that my granny wasn’t looking after me, I cried every day…it was too much for me so she came back after a year".[1]
Mdolomba left school in eighth grade as he had problems of dyslexia . In an interview on Metro FM, he stated: "School was really tough for me.[4] It was a nightmare but I went back nonetheless." At the age of 15, Mdolomba started using Mandrax, and was also involved in crime-related actions in order to escape difficulties he faced at home.[4] He was sent to a youth detention centre for armed robbery where he started making music full-time. This eventually helped him break out of the life of crime and drug addiction.[4]
The Soil
editAfter being released from the youth detention centre and eventually returning to school, Samthing Soweto began taking interest to a school choir.[5] The choir was led by Buhlebendalo Mda, who was later one of the vocalists of the acappella group The Soil.[5] While attending the choir's performance, Mdolomba wanted to start a group [The Soil], describing it as: "A group that sings songs, songs that we can afford to sing. And I say afford, because everything out there was programmed or played with instruments and we couldn't afford that, so I was like let's use our voices".[5]
After the formation of The Soil, the group met the head of the entertainment company Native Rhythms, Sipho Sithole, who was keen on signing them to his label.[5] After signing and beginning their first project, Mdolomba began learning how to produce music and released his debut solo studio album, This N That Without Tempo, and also started making music with a nu jazz band, The Fridge.[5] Mdolomba left both parties due to contractual disputes and creative differences.[5]
Influence
editPrior to meeting members of The Soil, Mdolomba was arrested for public robbery in Avalon cemetery at Klipriviersoog, Soweto.[6] His sentence was suspended and he was sent to a youth detention center in Krugersdorp, West Rand.[5] Mdolomba was encouraged to sing by his fellow inmates, who sang using a prison style of chanting called Gumba Fire, which includes singing Kwaito songs in a a cappella format.[5] This became a major influence in him establishing the group The Soil, in terms of both working in a group, and using bare vocals as a musical instrument.[5] He also stated that the male choral group Ladysmith Black Mambazo had an influence on him in venturing to a cappella.[7]
The Fridge
editAfter leaving The Soil, Mdolomba continued with the nu jazz group, The Fridge. The band consisted of a drummer, Ade Omotade, bassist Muthusi and Mdolomba as the vocalist; it gained success in playing on local shows and festivals, including The Loft at Melville, Gauteng.[8] The group released their debut EP, Bass Drum & Sam, in 2011 through digital media.[9] The Fridge disbanded in 2015 due to two members, Thusi and Ade, relocating.[9]
2010–2021: Solo projects and Isphithiphiti
editIn 2013, Mdolomba appeared on poet Makhafula Vilakazi's South African poetry album, I Am Not Going Back to the Township, credited both as a guest vocalist and producer.[10] Following his debut studio album, This N That Without Tempo, which was independently released on 6 August 2010, Mdolomba released his debut EP, Eb'suku, on 4 January 2014.[11] In support of Eb'suku, Mdolomba headlined the 2014 Joy of Jazz Festival, representing "Sounds Of Democracy".[12] He also performed at the Rocking The Daisies Festival held on 2–5 October 2014 at Cape Town, Western Cape.[13] That same year, he composed and performed the title sequence of the drama series Rhythm City, and also appeared on the soundtrack of the drama film Otelo Burning.[14][15]
In 2015, Mdolomba appeared on the Coca-Cola-sponsored live-music television series Coke Studio Africa, alongside artist Spoek Mathambo and bassist Shane Cooper.[16] In May 2017, Mdolomba made his superior breakthrough with his feature on the Sun-El Musician song "Akanamali".[17] The song received South African Music Awards for Best Collaboration, SAMPRA highest airplay, and SAMRO highest airplay at the 24th South African Music Awards.[18]
On 20 September 2019, his second studio album, Isphithiphithi, was released.[19] The album broke the record of the highest number of users "pre-adding" the album on the streaming service Apple Music South Africa, before the release of the album; the record was previously held by singer Billie Eilish.[20][21]
"I am surprised and excited, I didn't know there was another record to be broken, which is a great feat for me. I thank all my fans for being so supportive and loyal."
He released four singles for the album, including "Akulaleki" (featuring Sha Sha) which peaked number-one on the local Apple Music chart.[23] The song "Akulaleki" was certified gold.[24] At the 26th ceremony of South African Music Awards, Isphitiphithi received the Best Afro Pop Album award.[25]
2022–present: Upcoming projects
editIn early January 2022, he announced his upcoming live album which is set to be recorded on the second quarter of 2022.[26]
In March 2022, Soweto teased "Amagents" single on his Instagram account. The song was released on June 24, 2022.[27] It debuted number one in South Africa.[28] The song was certified gold in South Africa.[29]
In July 2022, Soweto embarked on his Now or Never tour, which included two dates.[30]
Tours
edit- Now or Never (2022)
Discography
editStudio albums
edit| Title | Album details | Certifications |
|---|---|---|
| This N That Without Tempo |
|
|
| Isphithiphithi |
|
RiSA:Platinum[32] |
| Danko! |
|
Singles
editAs lead artist
edit| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ZA | |||||||
| "Get Down" (Fka Mash, Samthing Soweto) | 2018 | — | Non-album single | ||||
| "Omama Bomthandazo" (featuring Makhafula Vilakazi) | 2019 | Isphithiphithi | |||||
| "Akulaleki" (featuring Sha Sha, DJ Maphorisa, Kabza De Small) | — | ||||||
| "Weekend" (Samthing Soweto, De Mthuda) | 2020 | — | |||||
| "Amagents" | 2022 | RiSA: Gold | Non-album single | ||||
| "10K Yey'nkomo" (Aymos, Mas Musiq, Samthing Soweto featuring Sha Sha) | 2024 | — | Impilo | ||||
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | |||||||
Awards and nominations
edit| Awards | Year | Category | Results | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SAMA 26 | 2020 | Best Afro-Pop album | Won | [34] |
| SA AmaPiano Music Awards | 2021 | Best AmaPiano Live Vocal Performance | Nominated | [35][36] |
| Best Amapinao Vocalist | Nominated | |||
| Best AmaPiano Collaboration | Nominated | |||
| All Africa Music Awards | 2022 | Best Male Artist in Africa Inspirational Music | Pending | [37] |
References
edit- ^ a b c d e "7 things you didn't know about Samthing Soweto". SowetanLIVE.
- ^ "Samthing Soweto". Incwajana.
- ^ Adejoy (15 November 2019). "Samthing Soweto reacts to his album certified platinum | Fakaza News". Fakaza News.
- ^ a b c "Samthing Soweto details his struggles with reading and writing in school". TimesLIVE.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "SAMTHING DISHES OUT THE TRUTH ABOUT THE SOIL FOR HIS FANS". Tha Bravado.
- ^ "Samthing Soweto says his community has forgiven him for his criminal past". TimesLIVE.
- ^ "Samthing Soweto talks about Isphithiphithi, childhood & music". Kaya FM.
- ^ Sbabe Khoza (2 May 2014), Samthing Soweto, retrieved 27 April 2016
- ^ a b "The Fridge | Design Indaba". Design Indaba. Retrieved 27 April 2016.
- ^ "Sharp turns on an angry road". Mail & Guardian.
- ^ "Eb'suku". Samthing Soweto.
- ^ "In Pictures: The Joy of Jazz". eNCA.
- ^ "Rocking the Daisies full line-up". Bizcommunity.com.
- ^ "Rhythm City's fresh new title sequence". e.tv.
- ^ "Otelo Burning Mixtape". Akhona Ndungane.
- ^ "Folk meets House for a Culoe De Song on Coke Studio". Channel24.
- ^ "Listen Free to Sun-El Musician – Akanamali (feat. Samthing Soweto) Radio". iHeartRadio.
- ^ "Sun-El Musician, Joyous Celebration big winners at first night of Samas". SowetanLIVE.
- ^ "Listen to Samthing Soweto's Album 'Isiphithiphithi'". OkayAfrica.
- ^ "Samthing Soweto's Isphithiphithi Makes Apple Music History!". People Magazine.
- ^ "Local artist Samthing Soweto on what it's like to be top of Apple Music". East Coast Radio.
- ^ "'I'm surprised and excited!'". Daily Sun.
- ^ "Samthing Soweto Thought He Was Too Old for Chart Success. He Was Wrong". Rolling Stone.
- ^ Matiwane, Nonku (10 November 2019). "SAMTHING SOWETO GOES GOLD". Daily SUN.
- ^ Shabangu, Nobantu. "Here's a List of the 2020 South African Music Awards (SAMAs) Winners – OkayAfrica". OkayAfrica. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
- ^ "Samthing Soweto engages with his fans over live show concept – Sunday World". Sunday World. 8 January 2022. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
- ^ Maako, Keitumetse (23 June 2022). "Samthing Soweto releases highly-anticipated single | Channel". South Africa: Channel. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
- ^ Tsewu, Siya (24 June 2022). "Samthing Soweto's new single Amagents is already topping charts and he's grateful | Drum". South Africa: Drum. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
- ^ "Samthing Soweto's "Amagents" has been certified Gold". Independent Online. 13 July 2022.
- ^ Gaanakgomo, Constance (1 July 2022). "Samthing Soweto announces two cities for his 'Now or Never' Tour". TshisaLIVE. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
- ^ "Isphithiphithi by Samthing Soweto". Apple. Retrieved 1 November 2019.
- ^ "Samthing Soweto's album hits platinum sales – Sunday World". Sunday World. 9 November 2019.
- ^ "Danko! by Samthing Soweto". Apple. Retrieved 1 March 2021.
- ^ Entertainment Reporter (5 August 2020). "WATCH: Samthing Soweto is 'surprised' by his big SAMA win". Independent Online.
- ^ Shumba, Ano (21 July 2021). "SA Amapiano Music Awards 2021: All the nominees | Music in South Africa". Music in Africa.
- ^ Shumba, Ano. "SA Amapiano Music Awards 2021: All the winners | Music in Africa". Music in Africa. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
- ^ Hansen, Gabriel Myers (16 September 2022). "All Africa Music Awards 2022: All the nominees". Music in Africa. Retrieved 16 May 2022.