Artist Profile: Zubs - A Legends Tale

Rated as Africa’s Hip Hop ambassador, Zubz penned his first rhymes at the age of 12. After graduating from varsity he won a major battle at legendary club 206 and graced the stage alongside Talib Kweli, Dead Prez, Black Thought and Jeru da Damaja at Black August.His grooming as an award worthy artist started with his highly acclaimed first album/mix tape,Last Letta. He has gone on to pen three albums Listener’s Digest (2004), HeadphoneMusic in a Parallel Universe (2006)and the 2009 release Cochlea: One Last Letta. Throughout this he’s stuck to his definition of Hip Hop: True, Lyrical, Brave and wholly Zubz.

His grooming as an award worthy artist started with his highly acclaimed first album/mix tape, Last Letta, which was released for free to the public. The music was produced by Optical Illusion’s Battlekat, who also had a hand in Zubz’ subsequent release and full album, Listener’s Digest, released in 2004. Following the success of Listener’s Digest, he released Headphone Music in a Parallel Universe and even more people started listening. Not surprisingly, this album offered deep insight into the artist’s thoughts and feelings about things that most of us are usually too afraid to talk about.

In 2009, after a two year break, Zubz’s third offering, Cochlea: One Last Letta, has a different, lighter and slightly commercial (for Zubz) feel to it. Despite this, he’s stuck to his definition of Hip Hop: True, Lyrical, Brave and wholly Zubz. Cochlea: One Last Letta is the marriage of all the elements that result in sheer listening pleasure: thought provoking and relatable content, sick beats and cool collaborations with some of Africa’s vocal and poetic gems including RJ Benjamin, Lebo Mashile and Pebbles. Part Time Lover – Full Time Freek is currently enjoying massive rotation at leading South African stations while Time To Heal – A New Era is in the top 10 of more than 4 Student Radio Stations nationwide.

Besides being regarded as one of the best lyricists from Southern Africa, Zubz is involved in various grassroots and youth empowerment projects. He’s been a a chief mentor for the Power In the Voice, a project endorsed and run by the British Council http://powerinthevoice.britishcouncil.org/and international programmes such as the Dutch funded Virus Free Generation campaign  www.virusfreegeneration.eu/hiphoptour.

In December 2008 Zubz was in Italy collaborating with European artists to create awareness among European Union countries of the HIV/AIDS problems we face in Africa. He’s currently working on a Sibongile Khumalo led initiative in which a group of artists are involved in a campaign of healing the nation in the wake of the 2009 general election in South Africa. Zubz, Ringo Madlingozi, Tumi and Lebo Mashile are currently writing and producing a song that’s going to spearhead the campaign.

Musicians such as Sipho “Hotstix” Mabuse, Simphiwe Dana, Busi Mhlongo, Shado Twala, Yvonne Chaka Chaka and of course Zubz, amongst others will be pledging their support to this cause. He was one of the headline acts at a fundraiser for Zimbabwe called “Make Some Noise”, where he brought the house down alongside Tumi and the Volume and Zimbabwean based emcees and poets, Outspoken and Comrade Fatso.

Download Pack: Zubs Music