Mmabatho-born hip-hop star Khulane ‘Khuli Chana’ Morule long solidified himself as one of South Africa’s most fluent artists in the art of musicality. His SAMA-winning 2012 album Lost in Time was a prime example of diversity, comprising rap music, neo-soul, kwaito, and a touch of contemporary gospel. Khuli marked his return to music and his piano debut with the Tyler ICU-assisted; Buyile’, and now he’s returned to mark more territory in the genre with ‘Khuliyano‘.
Sonically, ‘Khuliyano’ is an amapiano-inspired interpretation of hip-hop with traces of kwaito chromosomes. The signature log drum from the yanos dominates the track, a clear marker that does everything to not betray the name of the song. Yet, the song also mimicks the thumping tempo of ‘Hape Le Hape 2.1’ and sees Khulane lean heavily on the cadence and flow of his hip-hop aspect.
The instrumental matrix of the song includes a languid piano loop which contrasts with the energetic hi-hats against the backdrop of a steady bass drum.
Throughout the song, Morule goes through the motions of reaffirming his status in the game, mentioning his endorsement deals (“Lunch Bar, legendary marketing”) and his position in the game as one of the best (‘Khuliyano is the GOAT’).
This theme has been something of a rut in his Khuli’s career, with most of his singles recently being about his comeback to the music game. Musically, Khuli flexes his seamless flow-switching capabilities, mixing amapiano ad-libs (“Atju!”) with deft code-switching to create a stew in which multiple genres could blend without clashing and becoming incoherent noise.
Considering that this is Khuli’s first piano single as a solo artist, ‘Khuliyano’ is a clean rendition of a divergent piano record. That’s one thing the Motswako Originator has always been a master of, hybridizing any genre he dips his toe into without compromising the integrity of the music or turning himself into caricature trying to transition into a different sound.
He may not be perfect at it, but he’s very close to the Goldilocks Zone with ‘Khuliyano’.
Listen to ‘Khuliyano’:
