Pretoria - The new single by versatile music producer DJ Skhu, titled “Kwanzaa”, is dropping worldwide as of Friday morning.
The song is momentous in more than one way. It is his “first fruit” of 2023, and most importantly, the debut offering under his new record label Skhu Music Production.
This week, DJ Skhu took some time out from pre-release campaigns to explain to the Pretoria News the story behind his latest offering.
He said: "Kwanzaa is the annual celebration of African-American culture, which takes place from December 26 to January 1.
"The celebration culminates in a communal feast called Karamu, usually on the sixth day of the celebration. It was established by activist Maulana Karenga, based on African harvest festival traditions from various parts of west and south-east Africa. Kwanzaa was first celebrated in 1966."
DJ Skhu said he always found the concept of the celebration fascinating. This is where his new song ‘Kwanzaa’ gets its title from.
The name “Kwanzaa” is derived from the phrase “Matunda ya Kwanzaa” which means “First Fruits” in Swahili; and “Kwanzaa” is the first fruit from DJ Skhu’s “baby”, his record label. On this song, DJ Skhu introduces Kaygow, whom he collborated with.
“I always give the upcoming artist or producers the platform to showcase their talent," he said. "This is to also inspire them that in life you need to take your work seriously in order to achieve the greatness. Kaygow is one of the young upcoming producers from Durban. He's very good and also produces good music. Remember the name; expect good things from Kaygow going forward."
Asked how he remained relevant and his sound fresh with every release, DJ Skhu said most of the time he liked to do research with regards to new trends.
He explained: “I can say that I am also someone who has an ear for listening to music that people like the most, and every year the sound changes. As a music producer, I must have a way of presenting new sounds to the listener."
The single is available on all social media and digital music platforms.
For this release, DJ Skhu Music Production has partnered with a distribution company called Proton from Italy.
"I'm proud because this is a sign of growth for me in the music industry. It was my desire to set up my record label and watch it rise. There is a lot more to come for Skhu Music Production," he said.
Pretoria News