DJ Zinhle recently sat down with 5FM Drive for an exciting interview where she opened up about her music journey, her upcoming album, and her highly anticipated Zee Nation Fest, set to take place on 9 August at Nasrec Expo Centre, Johannesburg.
She spoke with passion about her creative process behind the new album, saying, “I do production first cause I need to listen to the music for a long time after it’s been done just to think about the type of vocal that I want. I know my style and the vocalist that I work with. I felt really special doing the album.”
One of the album’s special tracks is a remix of her 2009 hit “Pepe”—an idea that came from her husband, Murdah Bongz. “In an album there’s songs and sound is definitely like a spiritual sound. In an album you need a balance. He felt we needed something like a Pepe remix.”
Zinhle shared that she initially wanted Cassper Nyovest on the remix. “Originally I thought I’d put Cassper Nyovest on because he’s good with that type of flow, like easy going. But he mized me,” she laughed. “After he had agreed actually, I can show you on text when he agreed and then I sent him a snippet of the song and then he never came back to me.”
She added with a laugh, “But also he’s gaming at night. He’s online at night. I should’ve texted at night.”
Even though the collab didn’t work out, Zinhle didn’t let it stop her. She revealed that she eventually finished the song with her husband, who’s known for his creative music style and strong influence on her work.
Turning to her Zee Nation Fest, she encouraged fans to go all out with their outfits. “Whatever’s extra. Whatever you wouldn’t normally wear. This is the opportunity to go crazy.” When asked to describe the festival, she simply said: “Fashion week, Oscars in terms of music, and vibes.”
Zee Nation Fest is a Day to Night music festival celebrating Women’s Day and hosted by Africa’s number one female DJ herself. The event will run from 12:00pm to 2:00am, with a massive lineup including DBN Gogo, Mawhoo, Cici, Kamo Phela, Sjava, Nadia Nakai, and many more of Mzansi’s top stars.
DJ Zinhle is pulling out all the stops to give her fans a musical and fashion experience to remember!
