A quick look into the story behind Muzi and Zoë Modiga’s ‘Uhlanga’

Kwasukasukela, exactly on the first of May at 00:00 SAST, South African DJ, singer, songwriter, and record producer Muzi blessed us with the visuals for ‘Uhlanga’, as part of the rollout leading into the release of his album Electric Zululand. The song features South African singer and songwriter Zoë Modiga.

When I saw clips of Uhlanga on Instagram, I instantly jumped onto YouTube to fully absorb the work of art.

Imagine this scenario: YOU’VE decided to join a cult for reasons only you and the Lord know, and as with most cults, there’s a stage where an initiation ceremony is held to welcome new members, and they ask you to “pick a song” that will accompany you as you leave the old and enter the new. Uhlanga is the song that I’d advise you to pick. Listen to the song and hopefully, you’ll understand where I’m coming from.

First off, listening to the song and watching the video was one of the most pleasurable and spiritual experiences I’ve had in a long while. After days of riding the wave that Uhlanga is, it’s safe to say that both the visuals and the song are perfect works of art. Top that off with the choreography. Ohhh.

The imagery was so striking that it lingered long after the screen went black. I needed to understand the mechanics behind that specific magic. So, I did what anyone looking for answers in the digital age does: I slid into Muzi and Zoë’s DMs to get a peek behind the curtain into how this specific world was built.

By Khaya Mnisi

Here is what went down when we locked in:

Khaya Mnisi: Zoë, in several moments your movement feels closely tied to rhythm, almost like you're interpreting the music physically rather than performing over it. Were you responding directly to the playback on set, or was the choreography already locked before filming?

Zoë Modiga: The choreography in the “Uhlanga” music video was a natural response to the music. I find that music tends to compel me into movement and Muzi’s work evoked that in particular. It really is just the physical embodiment of the sound.

Khaya: Also, what stood out to you most about Muzi's way of building this work, and how did that influence how you approached your own performance?

Zoë : Muzi is a very generous collaborator who prioritises the music and honours it at every part of the process. I believe I am the same, so it made for a wonderful music marriage. I think he’s some of the best of what we have and I’m just excited for people to deepen their love and respect for him.

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Khaya: Muzi, there's a moment in the opening where the natural elements, especially the bull horns, immediately set a tone before anything else unfolds. There is a strong sense that the location and natural elements are not background, but active participants in the work. Why was it important for the environment to introduce the work before the music or performance fully takes over?

Muzi: This was the first time I shot a video for something after having finished the song. This allowed time to think what we wanted the video to convey. We didn’t really have specific locations in mind but we knew how we wanted the visuals to feel. So we just flowed and trusted that energy, using album name, ELECTRIC ZULULAND, as our guiding light.

Khaya: To both of you, the title Uhlanga carries meaning that already frames how the work is experienced. If the song stood alone without any visual interpretation, how would you describe its presence on its own? Not in technical terms, but in the way it feels as a complete work.

Zoë: I don’t mean to add astrology into this but I am a water sign, a Pisces and Muzi is an earth sign, a Taurus. I think this song really encapsulates the essence of earth and water so beautifully. Also, being that we are both Kwa Zulu natives, I think the song really lends us into African sonic futures while also grounding us in what we know, in who we innately are. It is spirit, sound, embodiment, identity.

Muzi: Well, my music is always layered and the layers here are both mythological and also have a literal interpretation.

The beat, that’s where my sonic imagination thrives cause that’s what I am, a music producer first. This is how I build a world for the listener, then the words come to ground that idea. So at the start, you hear mud, and water and weather cause I wanted to make the earth audible. So you can hear/feel the reeds grow as the song progresses.

In a literal sense, as a person in your own life, it speaks to fighting for something. ‘Woza nayo’ is the constant chant of encouragement for growth in this sense.

Khaya: Now that Electric Zululand is finally out in the world, what do you feel is the core sound or idea that everything else in the project is built around?

Muzi: There is no core sound really rather than me being imaginative. It’s the beauty of creating from within yourself. I can imagine new sounds. New ways of saying things and also can improve on things I’ve done before. Doing all of this whilst being playful because that’s what the expression gods ask of me, to just be and to have fun. The words ‘Electric’ and ‘Zululand’ are just the guiding light.

Without dismissing the cult scenario, I also imagine you listening to Uhlanga, or even Kwaitoverse and Sunflower, when you’re feeling down and need a pick-me-up. Just press play and the songs will compel you to rise and shine, and dance your heart out. The same energy that this song carries is present throughout the album, that irresistible, spiritually charged, electric sound.

It’s the kind of music that reminds you that sound can still transport you somewhere else entirely.