Kwaito: The Subculture

Kwaito 

Kwaito, a music genre born in the townships of Soweto, South Africa in the early 1990s, expresses the lifestyle of South Africa’s young black population.

There are various theories on the origin of the word, the most obvious being that it comes from the Afrikaans word kwaai which directly translates as ‘angry’, but is more colloquially used, including by non-Afrikaans-speaking South Africans, to mean ‘really cool’. For example, one might say: “Have you seen Thebe’s new wheels? Man, that car is kwaai!” or “Jislike, that party last night was kwaai! ”

An equally plausible theory is that, coming from a similar root via Afrikaans, it derives from the so-called Tsotsitaal word “amakwaitosi” which means ‘gangster’. Tsotsitaalis a sort of patois spoken in the townships around Johannesburg by, at least originally, the criminal underworld. To describe the musical style of Kwaito is not easy, regarding its variety of different influences. It is best described as local music with global influences. 

 Locally it is influenced by the sounds of: Marabi of the 20’s, Kwela of the 50’s, maskandi of the labourers and Kwaito of the 90’s, are each 20^th century musical phenomenon’s that profoundly influenced the engineering of the black experience. These sounds were instruments of dissent and reflection, artistic narratives which rhythmically told stories of life in the township. The ingenuity of ghettos around the world has always been their ability to create vehicles of protest through artistic inventions articulated distinctly by their choice of dance, fashion and music.

A most distinguishable subculture that encapsulated youth’s revolt in the townships was amapantsula. They first emerged in the 70’s as a dance form that rapidly evolved into protest which rejected and fought institutionalization. Amapantsula, nabo’Mshoza, their female counterparts, were a sub culture of social upheaval, a subtle political engagement which at its conception challenged hegemonic domination. Reclaiming spaces and translating identity

From the unique way that they spoke, moved danced and dressed they consciously pursued the transcendence of their immediate realities.

Largely drawing influence from biographical movies of the Italian mafia, a group which too was subjected to institutional alienation, amapantsula modeled their ambition to that of Sicilians. Welcome the South African Italian aka amaitaliana. And like the mafia, amapantsula found solace in the stitches of expensive clothing. These threads of opulence lent to the identities of township youth, distorted shades of power that were at once inconceivable. “You are what you wear mama”, amapantsula breathed life into the ostentatious colors they wore, boasting wealth and power, artificial creations which purposely refused structural confines of dispossession subscribed to them

Various kwaito musicians continue to keep this ethos alive, foot soldiers depicting in their music faces of the township, the sound of its youth, the foot work and color of the pantsula. Mdu and the now deceased Brown Dash, both reputable veterans of kwaito, articulate the township narrative most poignantly in the stories narrated in between the sounds of isichamto and Imibongo. Kwaito, coming from kwaai, directly translated meaning angry, an enraged outcry protesting negative connotations, of crime and ignorance, usually attached to the participants of the movement.

These men and women are the architects of the streets, side walk preachers and street corner hustlers. They built this city and run it. 

One of the ongoing controversies about Kwaito is the question of whether it has a political message. Emerging during a period of significant political change, Kwaito and its lyrics are often said to lack political meaning.  This accusation stems from the fact that Kwaito is dance music and many of its lyrics are simply about having fun. To coin it apolitical totally ignores some important facts though.

Many of the early Kwaito songs reflect decades of oppression and some even use old Anti-Apartheid chants in their lyrics. Additionally, it has to be remembered that the generation that drove Kwaito to success grew up in a country that was changing but still faced various problems.