The South African Phenomenon: Die Antwoord

South Africa is a country that is rich in diversity with many ethnicities and religions cohabitating together.

You can find white Dutch farmers, Indians, Cape Malays, Zulus, Xhosas, inhabitants of English extraction, Portuguese and many religious denominations such as Islam, African Independent Church, Catholic, Pentecostal, Reformed, Methodist, and much more.

 

Such presences can also influence music and this can be seen with acts such as Die Antwoord, which can be translated from Afrikaans to English as “The Answer”.

Originally from the Johannesburg area, Ninja, Yolandi Visser, and DJ Hi-Tek reached international notoriety when they released “Enter the Ninja”, which broke into the top 50 charts in different countries such as the United Kingdom and Australia. Known in real life as Watkin Tudor Jones and Anri du Toit, the dynamic duo found the winning formula by combining English and Afrikaans lyrics to techno and hip hop beats that appeal to the general public.

 

Not much is known about DJ Hi-Tek except for the fact that he goes under numerous pseudonyms.

In fact, they soon broke into the American charts and became very popular and demanded within the United States of America.

 

But who is Die Antwoord exactly?

They are two young adults from the Gauteng region in South Africa that bring ethnic flavor to the charts around the world. The duo, who was also romantically involved, have a daughter called Sixteen. They have also featured their daughter numerous times in their art conceptual videos that mock African society but also American standards and stardom. For example, in “Fatty Boom Boom”, Die Antwoord filmed the video in Johannesburg with a Lady Gaga lookalike experiencing the “wild” life in South Africa. The video and lyrics were made to make fun of Lady Gaga and how South Africa is perceived by many outsiders. Furthermore, the video was deemed controversial as both Ninja and Visser used African tribal body paint and was deemed ethnically insensible to some communities.

 

However, this has not stooped Die Antwoord from touring the world and collaborating with artists and celebrities such as Cara Delevigne and Aphex Twin. Curiously, they did not accept an offer to perform as opening acts for Lady Gaga in her “Born This Way” tour in 2013.

Visser and Ninja have also reached notoriety thanks to their critical side of South African politics. In fact, they proclaim to represent the “zef” genre which is a particular cultural movement that was founded approximately in 1994 when South Africa first held democratic elections. In this context, many musicians, especially of Caucasian background, reacted to this attempt in solidarity by producing music with hints of satire and criticism. Therefore, one may understand why Die Antwoord is an act that is both popular as well as highly controversial.

 

 

Nonetheless, they are represented in their own right of South African culture.

Popnable /Popnable Media