Sampa The Great has released the swaggering new single ‘Bona’, another taste from her forthcoming second album.
The ARIA Award-winning rapper looked to her childhood in Botswana for inspiration for the track. Co-produced by Mag44 and Sampa herself (her first official producer credit), ‘Bona’ is influenced by Kwaito and Amapiano, fusing the house styles into something uniquely Sampa.
For the rapper, the track represented another chance to showcase the music that means most to her. “I haven’t yet shown the influence Botswana has had on me musically; this is the style, language and swag of Batswana youth,” she says.
“‘Bona’ is a chance for me to shine light on other elements of music that I was influenced by when growing up, outside of Zambian music. I want to bring a Southern African anthem to the mix and DJ desks, and show that not all music coming out of Africa is Afrobeats.”
‘Bona’ comes accompanied by an experimental visualiser directed by Travys Owen, featuring Sampa performing against several fascinating scenes; Owen’s visualiser expertly mirrors the colourful energy of the track (see below).
‘Bona’ is the third single released from Sampa’s second studio album As Above, So Below, set for release on September 9th via Loma Vista Recordings (preorder here). She previously dropped ‘Lane’, featuring Denzel Curry, and ‘Never Forget’, a collaboration with Chef 187, Tio Nason, and Mwanjé.
Sampa described the latter as “an ode to Zamrock music, a genre born in the ’70s combining traditional Zambian music and psychedelic rock, particularly focusing on kalindula music – a traditional style of bass guitar.”
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As Above, So Below is the eagerly-anticipated follow-up to Sampa’s 2019 debut The Return, which won the Australian Music Prize that year. It also earned Sampa Best Female Artist, Best Independent Release, and Best Hip Hop Release at the 2020 ARIA Music Awards.
Sampa The Great’s ‘Bona’ is out now.
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Check out ‘Bona’ by Sampa The Great:
