Faces of 2013: Serious hybrid dance music

BFG. Picture: Supplied

BFG is blowing up writes Khotso Sello

There’s a new school crew that goes by the name of BIG FKN GUN (BFG).

They walk the fine line between innovation and being dismissed as weird by local music consumers.

The problem lies more with our eardrums than their talent, though.

Solomon Ngcobo, aka Bra Sol, is BFG’s lead singer.

A copywriter by trade, Ngcobo expresses his irritation with being boxed when asked what kind of music the band makes.

“We are artists more than musicians, so we don’t like boxing ourselves. We express ourselves artistically through the music,” says Ngcobo.

Their debut EP, Pop Models, is a fusion of electronic beats and poetry, a kind of jazz with a sprinkling of funk.

The wildly popular hipster “It Boy”, Spoek Mathambo, features on the track Wunga, which has trip hop and funk elements.

It’s no wonder, then, that BFG is already drawing attention internationally and getting the thumbs up from the likes of Fader, Rolling Stone and OK Africa magazines.

The band is also comprised of graphic designer Soul Factor and So&So, who also doubles up as the manager.

The hybrid dance music movement is growing by the year, and whatever styles consumers are into, we should all be standing up and demanding well-produced music.

BFG are taking themselves seriously. We should too.

- Khotso Sello