Iimini [VINYL]

Over the space of eight years, Bongeziwe Mabandla has steadily built a career that now sees him take his place as the enigmatic spirit of African Soul. Mabandla's early musical influences had come from his childhood through a range of artists including Tracy Chapman, The Fugees, Jabu Khanyile, Bongo Maffin and Busi Mhlongo. On its release in 2017, Mangaliso, (meaning "marvel" or "miracle") signalled Mabandla's extraordinary musical reach. A significant amount of the album's success came from his collaboration withproducer, Tiago Correia-Paulo, a masterful musician, songwriter and producer. Mabandla and Correia-Paulo's working relationship has evolved into a true creative collaboration - one that simultaneously roots itself in the deep and fertile soil of Mabandla's folk instincts and Correia-Paulo's intuitive feel for a broad range of music, including electronica. Live, Mabandla is mesmerising and is every bit the enigmatic spirit of African soul. The latter part of 2019 saw him play in many of countries around the world. As he eyes the coming year, Mabandla is keenly aware of what lies ahead for an artist who upends sterotypes of what music produced in Africa circa 2020 sounds like. He's preparing to take iiMini on the road - and spreading his creative wings.