A kasi boy hailing from the stellate township of Soweto, amapiano producer TribeSoul, born Thabo Thoabala, is a superstar in the making from the incubators of the backrooms, which have seen countless flourishing of pioneers and musical innovators.
Thabo spoke of the origins of his career as well as what pushed him down the path of production.
“My love for music goes way back, with me starting music production in 2014. My main inspirations who sparked my interest in music are the OGs of the game and instrumentalists such as Robert Glasper, even though my influences came from many places. I realised that I wanted to take music seriously when the recognition for my craft started pouring in as well as the pressure that comes with the love of music,” he said.
TribeSoul | SUPPLIED
A recent Sony Music Africa signee, TribeSoul dropped his debut extended play titled Backroom Music, an eight-track feast that has been a long time coming. Featuring the likes of Grammy-nominated musician Musa Keys, among others, Thoabala talked about the foundation of the album being collaborations with people he grew with.
“Most of what I did on the EP was merely me working with the same guys that I already have a working history with. The gents I started the movement with, that is. Though it’s unfortunate that I couldn’t get some collabos that I wished to have on the project, I am glad that I got to work with people I’m familiar, who share the same mindset and ideas that we’ve had since back in the day. For me, that was important in creating the album: having an understanding when it comes to the music.
TribeSoul | SUPPLIED
“Having to work with experienced people and well-known gents has helped me with my creative direction in terms of elevating my career and expanding my audience. Collaborations have always been important to me and the growth of my music because I’ve worked with so many people who incorporate their styles into my own, infusing our sounds until magic happens. So this project and the people that I worked with has been very beneficial to me and my career.”
TribeSoul spoke briefly about the lead single of his EP, “Phathaphatha”, featuring Musa Keys, Divine, and Toby Franco.
“As much as the project and its message speak for itself, I feel like Musa and I have an understanding when we work together, particularly on this project, and because of that I got to push myself to newer territories. I mean, I’m don’t fancy myself a good vocalist, but his ideas have helped me in cultivating this sound of mine,” he said.
Listen to “Phathaphatha”
TribeSoul conceded that while staying true to oneself is important, musicians had to continue evolving and improving their music.
“In music, you always learn a lot, and inspiration that you work with is just as vital. You can’t always just stick to doing the same sound. There must be change in what you do one way or another. Thinking like that has helped me in switching up my styles and moulding my sound, and collaborations are also key when it comes to that, as I’ve already mentioned earlier,” he said.
The producer revealed that with his EP, the objective was also to usher in a new sound.
“There are lots of subgenres out there. So right now, my aim with this one was to push my own new sound derived from Sgija. The plan is to expand this sound and broaden its reach and its spectrum, so that many people can learn and understand how the sound goes,” he said.
