The 2010s were certainly an interesting time for the music scene, more specifically, with the many sonic journeys undertaken within our own borders, with the SA hip hop scene reaching an all time high with artists such as AKA, Cassper Nyovest, Da LES, and Riky Rick making a splash and in many regards catapulting our nation’s relevance sonically onto the global stage. With songs such as Spirit by Kwesta featuring Wale functioning as one of the many bridges built to cross between the borders of the West and South Africa.

Alongside this, many tracks serve as tracks that are so inherently South African that they couldn’t be made anywhere else, working to build our unique voice in the global Hip Hop Scene, with tracks such as Caracara by KO or Boss Zonke by Riky Rick. We’re still feeling the impact of the 2010s hip-hop and its long-reaching effects. In honour of this explosive era of music, we’ve decided to make a playlist dedicated to that era of SA Hip Hop.