Rooted in the soil of self-care, the acknowledgement of power from within, and persevering straight towards the storm as buffaloes do, such has been the thematic scope of Amanda Black’s music.
Born Amanda Benedicta Antony, the Mthatha-born songstress lets the bucket of her prodigious artistry down the well of her heart to bring forth her latest single, ‘Nguwe’, her first official musical offering since her third studio album Mnyama.
Superimposed over consistent shakers and an elegiac piano, the heartening ballad saunters for three minutes and forty-one seconds, with Amanda Black in no rush to either begin the song or even get to the dying seconds of it. Marinating in the blend of melancholic production, the song’s slow tempo mimics LaSauce’s ‘I Do’, in which she featured, allowing her the luxury of packing each syllable with emotion and affording her enough space to let the beat sink in with the antidote of the lyrics.
In the first verse, she explores the theme of personal well-being and positive self-talk when she sings: “Ungab’ usoze uphinde uzithatha for granted / Ngoba impilo ilindele wena uzixolele.” The pre-chorus is gaplessly connected to the opening verse, with Amanda expanding on feeling the pressure to have everything under control despite shouldering a collapsing world plagued with death, joblessness, and an uncertain future.
The lyrical therapy finds its power in the admission of struggling (“I know I got a lot on my mind”), the willpower to keep moving (“I know one day I’m gon’ get it right”), and the understanding that the matrix is a universal system we all wrestle with (“I know you got a lot on your mind / One day I know you gon’ get it right”).
The mantra-like chorus glues the theme of self-love and positivity with the message of togetherness in the fight for survival. With her “Nguwe, nguwe uthando” incantation, Amanda Black addresses the unhealed inner wounds which possess a person to hunt for love, happiness, and wholeness in people, places, and products that do nothing for them but add to their sorrow and emptiness.
‘Nguwe’ is the reassurance that self-love is the only self-prepared food one needs to take to medicate and shield the heart, mind, and body from the ills of the world threatening inner peace and love for self.‘Nguwe’, unlike other power ballads, doesn’t promise that one won’t have to fight. And in most cases, a life of peace and wellness is hard-won.
Amanda’s newest joint, however, does guarantee that if one looks inward, not only will one find enough strength to keep on moving on thorny paths, but also an abundant supply of love to keep one sustained till the end.
Listen to ‘Nguwe’ here:
