Amapiano artists 9umba, Mdoovar and Toss’s single “Umlando” recently sparked a viral challenge across social media, instantly solidifying their presence in the local music scene.
The trio became an overnight sensation when the “Umlando Challenge” started topping the social media trends just a few weeks into the new year.
It all started when Toss shared a topless video of himself shaking his hips sideways, dancing to “Umlando”.
The original video, which garnered over a million views on Twitter, saw men and women taking up the challenge as they danced the January blues away on rooftops, moving cars, on top of furniture. The challenge spread like wildfire on the street of Twitterville.
“We grew up doing this dance, ekasi lam (my hood), we used to call it 2by2. After we recorded the song, u9umba shot the video of me dancing in different locations, and we dropped the video on social media, and the rest is Umlando,” explains Toss.
The stars told IOL Entertainment though they knew the song was “dope”, they never thought it would become such a viral hit.
And due to the popularity of the challenge, the Joburg based-stars say they were forced to release the song earlier than planned.
“We wanted the people to be redirected to the actual song so that that there would be more streams, and that’s another way of monetising the song. But the only problem is that it doesn’t happen overnight, and that’s what most people don’t know,” says 9umba.
He adds: “On the day we recorded the song, I kept telling the guys that this song is a smash, and when people started doing the dance and moving, it was just confirmation to me. It feels amazing to see that we managed to get the whole country shaking their hips. It’s truly an honour.”
On how they are adjusting to becoming national stars overnight, 9umba expressed that it’s a “great feeling, but also nerve-racking”.
“Normally, it is not us who change a lot. It’s the people around us that change because they assume that now the song is going viral, we already have money, and that’s not the case,” shares 9umba.
"Umlando" also features Sino Msolo, Lady Du, Young Stunna, Sir Trill & Slade, who bring their own unique flavour to the song that has taken social media by storm.
“We are grateful for everything that is happening. We appreciate everyone who has done the challenge. Thank you, guys. We also want to thank the artists that pulled up with their verses. They made the song more beautiful. They gave it an added flavour,” says Toss.
Mdoovar added that social media, if used correctly, can help produce more stars like themselves.
While the country continues to dance to Umlando, the guys are busy in the studio, cooking up more hit singles.
“South African can expect more music from the three of us and also individually. We may not be a group but are family so, we all want to see one another grow and prosper in our individual projects.
“What’s crazy is that this is the one song that we did not put too much effort into promoting it and it just blew up, and for that, we thank you, Mzansi,” adds Mdoovar.
“Umlando” is currently available on all digital platforms.