The year 2003 was undoubtedly the year of the OG's of South African Hip Hop. Some of the remarkable albums that were released in that year include Cashless Society's African Raw Material, Mizchif's Supernatural (My Return) and Spex's Nothing For Mahala. Ask any hip hop enthusiast worth his salt to count from the top of their head stand-out albums from that era and he'll drop the fore-mentioned projects. That year was especially auspicious because it cemented rap music and hip hop culture's positions in the country's cultural and entertainment arena: hip hop had become a part of us and we had become a part of hip hop. However, there is one album in particular which screams for attention for various reasons; one being that it was eagerly anticipated from as early as the late 90s by heads all over Jozi in particular, and by the rest of South Africa broadly speaking. Upon its eventual release, it lived up to the hype, and had a heretofore unseen impact on the culture itself, and even going as far as exceeding the fans' expectations in terms of lyrical content and production. You guessed it: that album is titled The Life, Rap & Drama by veteran rapper and producer, Amunishn. This year marks twenty years since its official release, and, apart from that sense of nostalgia it elicits, listening to it today, particularly the production, one could be forgiven for concluding that it was released in recent times. With regard to lyrical content, this album is heavily themed on hip hop politics from that bygone era as laid bare on tracks like Who's The Villain and Attention, which featured Mr Selwyn and introduced Kimberley-born rapper, Proverb, who would also become a household name in the game. On the backdrop of a sombre melody on the album's intro, Amu mentions the legendary groups, Black Noise & Prophets of Da City (POC), while he reflects on his own journey and contribution to the growth of the culture. He also explains the meaning behind the album's title and how the record in itself is an encapsulation of his personal struggles; he closes off with the words slash exhortation: "support local Hip Hop". However, the sombre mood earlier generated by the intro, quickly metamorphoses into the vibrant feel when the bouncy beat of the track Phakamisa drops unexpectedly like a bird's poop, triggering vigorous head-bobbing and an intense sense of excitement that only tip-top production and adroit song sequencing can trigger. The album is sequenced with a few skits, my personal favourite being Rhyme Break that sees Amu dropping a hot sixteen bar verse over a funk and jazz inspired instrumental, which is blended beautifully with the melodic beat of 'It's Over', a poignant song which (loosely deconstructed) is about a romantic break up with his lifelong lover: Hip Hop being the object of his personified lover. However, my personal stand-out song in the entire album is the timeless 'Since I Met You', and as the title suggests, Amu speaks fondly of how his life has been transformed since meeting the love of his life (which again could interpreted to be Hip Hop). 'The Magnificent' is another incredible song and it comes right after 'Act Crazy', which had tranformed local Hip Hop afficianados into a euphoric frenzy whenever it was pumped in Hip Hop circles and at parties back in the days. 'Ufunamina' is a fun and catchy song and reminiscent of J Dilla in it's simple arrangement, thereby highlighting the range, in terms of production, of this classic album. On Buza (Ask Me), Amu glides effortlessly through the soul-soothing beat, where he lets the listener in on his remarkable story and controversial views on Kwaito music. This is understandable given the context of the time: Kwaito was an established and popular genre within the black society at the time, and local Hip Hop was still trying to stand of steady feet. It is this side of genre politics which the rapper headlines on Buza. Listening to this record again after so many years has been such an auspicious reminder of my love for the Hip Hop culture. Amu is unquestionably the Godfather of South African Hip Hop, and I have revered and deeply admired him since the first time I saw him perform at Le Club 27 years ago.
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