Bongeziwe Mabandla

Bongeziwe Mabandla is a singer-songwriter based in Johannesburg whose music draws heavily from local South African folk melodies and beats. The music is calm, steeped in romantic tones, often delivered in an R&B adjacent vocal style and with a beautiful and smooth falsetto. He uses electronic instrumentation generously, though acoustic instruments and a nimbly plucked electric guitar with a bright sound are the foundations of his sound. The songs are very melodic and very much in line with western expectations about pop music, making it instantly accessible to those audiences as well. Mabandla sings in his native Xhosa. His 2020 album iimini is intended as an end to end experience where he tracks the arc of a romantic relationship from the couple's initial meeting to the final breakup.