Suffo gets his beat on
Langaville - Manqoba ‘Suffo’ Bota (20) says he found his life’s purposes in music.
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“I was in grade 6 when I first started rapping,” he explains.
Bota says it was a year later, at the school’s closing function, that he realised his full potential.
“I went on stage, did my thing, and when I finished the crowd went crazy. They wanted more so I carried on and no one wanted to go on stage after me so the show ended just like that.”
Suffo calls his music ‘nkabi rap’ which loosely translates to ‘location rap’.
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He describes it as low tempo, because he wants people to hear every single word.
“When I started rapping it was all in English but I soon switched to African languages because that is my audience. I need them to hear me.”
Although he gets a lot of positive feedback, Suffo says he is disappointed to observe that most of the support he gets is from people outside his kasi.
However he is hopeful that this will change over time because he does not only want to make a name for himself but he wants to put Langaville on the map.
“Making music is like making a stew. As you go along you add things that make it better, and you may have to change certain ingredients.”
Having released a few mixed tapes that he gives to his friends for free, Suffo says he has built a fan base and now he is ready to release a tape to sell.
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“I have found a good studio and I am happy with the business arrangement we have. I will definitely drop something in July.”
Suffo says that although music is his first love, he is wants to focus on making a movie that tells a story of the challenges people face ekasi and how to overcome them.
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