Black Coffee’s triumph at the Grammy Awards is not for him alone, but young South African artists too

Why Black Coffee‘s winning of the Grammy Award on Sunday is especially important for the South African creative industry.

By Edward Tsumele, CITYLIFE/ARTS Editor

It had to happen as he has put in the work over the years, pushing house tunes internationally, and making South Africa an important voice when it comes to this genre.

Here is a DJ who consistently produced music that touched audiences globally, pushing even those shy to do their thing on the global dance floors, from Alexandra township in Johannesburg to Miami, the UK to Spain, Black Coffee’s footprint is everywhere.

Winning the Grammy, making him one of a few South African musicians to have done so, others being Miriam Makeba and Ladysmith Black Mambazo,  Knosinathi Maphumulo AKA Black Coffee, with this triumph is proved the fact that indeed he is a formidable force globally on dance music. And with this Grammy award he has cemented not only his own, but South Africa’s influence on the dance music genre globally.

Many have come and gone, especially those pursuing commercial dance sounds in South Africa that brings in instant financial rewards, only to be forgotten  soon by fans for the next biggest thing. But Black Coffee, meticulously calibrated his path to this far. Deep house is not the type of music that is commercially driven, as it tends to be more intellectually inclined, and therefore needs more time, patience and commitment to nurse it till the ears of the music loving public embrace it. Black Coffee is the embodiment of that commitment to the genre.

A smart businessman too, he has invested part of his money wisely, including in property. He has also invested in the industry, having been in the news in recent years when he bought a huge chunk of the country’s legacy recording company Gallo for undisclosed amounts of money. Gallo’s catalogue is rich, as it is the country’s first recording company that recorded among other artists the Late Mahlathini and the late reggae icon, Lucky Dube, among other big names.

Coffee’s  international gigs have kept him occupied for most of the years, consistently entertaining at prestigious international platforms, and with that came a big pay cheque, some estimating it to be around R100 million in earnings annually.

What Black Coffee has done has  few rivals in the local entertainment industry, especially by spreading successfully his tentacles to the rest of the world. He has done in music what Trevor Noah is doing on TV, and visual artist Nelson Makamo  is doing on visual art, and that is making a huge impression on the globe with their art. Their footprints are everywhere.

It would therefore not be an exaggeration to suggest that what the older generation of artists has done, and that is to put South African culture and identity on the international stage, such as the late Miriam Makeba, the late Hugh Masekela and composer and theatre producer Lebo M, this current crop of artists such as Black Coffee, Makamo and Trevor Noah are currently matching those yesteryear artistic successes pound by pound..

And these achievements are a good thing as they will ultimately encourage especially young artists to dream big as they pursue their art, and as they will be able to see that a career in art is possible, and can be rewarding both spiritually and financially. If Black Coffee, Makamo and Noah can do it, anybody with enough talent, determination and discipline can do it too. With Black Coffee’s triumph, this should be the message reaching young ears in the country, especially those dreaming of a career in the arts.

And so the artist’s Grammy, is not for him alone, but  he is definitely sharing the joy with the many talented youngsters in the country, whose dreams are to reach the artistic heights he has just reached.

It is however important to note that the journey to the top was not covered in silver for Black Coffee. From humble beginnings, playing in smokey bars around the country, crafting his path into glitzy night clubs internationally, suggests that he meticulously planned his journey. Now he is enjoying the fruits of his efforts.

Black Coffee’s winning of the Grammy for the Best Dance/Electronic category. for his album Subconsciously on Sunday night in Las Vegas has made fans excited back home as congratulations will continue to flow on different social media platforms for the rest of the week, especially considering the fact that the DJ was up against some of the most talented DJs in the dance music genre, such as Major Lazer,and DJ Marshmello among others

“Congratulations  to Black Coffee for being awarded the Best Dance/Electronic Music award for his album ‘Subconsciously’ at last night’s #GRAMMYs . Thank you for flying the flag and inspiring a new generation of talent to take over the world,” President Cyril Ramaphosa said yesterday, April 4,, 2022.