Pretoria - The house music scene in South Africa has grown massively over the years and DJ Nova SA is just happy to be part of it all.
It has been a big shift for the man who grew up listening to a lot of jazz, particularly pioneers such as Steve Kekana and Hugh Masekela.
“They taught me to be very musical in music,” he said.
DJ Nova SA, real name Kabelo Phorohlo, is a music producer, engineer and video editor, just to mention a few of his hats.
He was born in Dennilton, Mpumalanga, 28 years ago. These days he is based at Windmill Park in Boksburg.
When his friends first called him Nova, he had no idea what it meant. However, he later learnt that it was Spanish for “new”.
“So basically it meant that I was a new producer coming up with a new sound.”
Regarding his music, he said it was aimed at healing souls and teaching people how to love even after they had experienced difficult times.
His musical journey started with remixing other people’s music. He then realised that to stay relevant he needed to create original works.
What followed were hits such as Ndidikiwe, featuring Nezi, Stuck on You featuring Zoe, Let’s Leave featuring Nalize and Mina Nawe, on which he was in the company of Mandy and Positive J.
“The songs are very special to me because they are amazing classics. They never get old.
“They sound new every time I listen to them and I have gained a really good following after dropping these songs,” he said.
Apart from collaborating with
others on these songs, he also worked with Fistaz Mixwell, Thebe, Cuebur, Moneoa and Big Nuz.
He singles out his house remix of Drunk in Love as a real banger. “I killed it to the core,” he said.
He emphasised the importance of collaborations. “I get to explore so many different sounds when I work with different artists.
“As a producer and musician, I learn so much from each and every individual I work with. That part is really fun for me and I enjoy it the most.
“My music grows and evolves every time I make a song. To me it depends on a certain stage I’m going through in life.
“There’s so much emotion involved in my music.”
DJ Nova SA is working on a new album, in addition to other projects and visuals.
His wish is to see more new talent given opportunities on major radio and TV platforms and be on high rotation like established artists.
“I wish we could realise the realist artists who are putting in so much work and yet still get underrated. Also, let us teach young artists the importance of being an artist and a business at the same time.”
Pretoria News