Gerduan Kemp is a rising name on the South African music scene who saw Pretoria as the best bet for his career.
The 27-year-old artist from Bloemfontein decided three years ago to put himself in the right place to make the most of his chance at success and made the move to Pretoria and embedded himself in the world of Afrikaans music.
Since, he has grown not only in his music but as a music video producer for some big names in South Africa.
“My whole life is in Bloemfontein, but if I want to do something in the music industry, I knew I had to move here,” Gerduan told Rekord.
“For the Afrikaans industry, Pretoria is the place to be.”
His passion for music started at a young age, but while studying communication science and media studies, he realised that he could make a career of it.
“I wrote my first song while I was studying, and did the recording myself… in my room at home. I had a mic set up and recorded the first song there,” he says.
That same DIY spirit extended to his music video production career, which began with him filming his first video for “Vergewe my as ek”.
As a lifelong photographer, he used his camera to bring his vision to life. That moment marked the start of what would later become his full-time job producing music videos for some of the most exciting names in the industry.
“I didn’t think the music video thing would grow as big as it did, but I put all my work into it. There’s not a day when I wake up and think, ‘Urgh.’ I’m always excited to wake up and make some magic,” he says.
His reputation grew quickly, and soon he was receiving calls from people he looked up to for collaborations.
“I remember getting the call from a manager I know, and when I answered, it was actually Elandré himself on the phone. It was so crazy.”
The two have since become friends, and the experience of working with someone he once looked up to has been one of the highlights of his journey.
As Gerduan has matured as an artist, both in music and in his video work, he said that he has settled into his confidence.
His new single “Koffie in die Kroeg” is his first step in a new direction towards honest music, paired with a music video shot at The Social Grill in Pretoria east.
“For me, especially with Koffie in die Kroeg, I said I want to do what I want to do,” he explains.
The song represents a step away from thinking about what will be popular.
“With some of the previous stuff, I thought, ‘What do the people want?’ But for me as an artist, it’s so important to give the people something real.”
The song carries a strong personal element, with its lyrics inspired by his own experiences of feeling out of place.
“I’m not really a kuiergat,” he admits.
“I wanted to tell the story of me being in a weird situation where I don’t necessarily fit in.”
Gerduan said that the song was similar to his move to Pretoria as he moved at the perfect time in his career while navigating the daunting aspect of fitting in in new places.
“Moving here was exactly the right time to move to Pretoria because I think if I moved here two years before that, nothing would have been the same as it is now.
“But in the context of the song, I think we have all been in a couple of places where we were at the right place at the wrong time.”
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