Let’s Listen: Usimamane — 20th: Days before MAUD album review
The up and coming Durban star shares his debut effort, but maybe it’s a tad too soon.
There’s been a shift happening in SA music for a while now. The meteoric rise of more dance-oriented genres like Amapiano has seen a noticeable decline in the mainstream relevance of others like SA hip-hop.
Coupled with the tragic losses of pioneers, who always managed to re-centre hip-hop in the cultural convo with smash hits, any observer can tell that the subgenre isn’t in a good place.
Nonetheless, a new guard has emerged. Quietly grinding and creating music on a smaller scale. Although bereft of era-defining moments, there’s a resurgence in the underground — with more rappers vying for dominance in the South African music landscape.
One of the most exciting new faces staking his claim for Mzansi A-list status is Umlazi-born emcee, Usimamane.
His rapid rise, secured by hit single Cheque, has seen him become the posterchild of Durban rap over the past year. As aging icons like Okmalumkoolkat have faded from the limelight, and future legends like Nasty C and Blxckie consolidate their early-veteran status in the game, it seems like Usimamane is the natural evolution of hip-hop from South Africa’s playground.
During his short-ish come-up, his trademark nonchalance conveyed confidence, funny and witty bars showed personality, and his nimble approach to rapping saw him effortlessly switch between English and vernac. The latter point is a key indicator of how a rapper will fare commercially, as audiences have always gravitated towards acts like PRO, HHP and Cassper, who portray their respective nuances and cultural contexts in a uniquely hip-hop way.
With this in mind, Usimamane started off as a sure-fire bet.
After all, he raps about everything from his sexual escapades as a rising star, to the emotional strain his career has given his real-life relationships, to his upbringing within the Shembe faith. He’s positioned to be relatable to South African Gen Z audiences who are engaging with the rest of the world at unprecedented rates. But on his debut album, 20th: Days Before MAUD, his unique advantages just don’t come across in the music.
Although he’s been on the ascendancy, already charting high with early hits like “Uvalo (feat. Sjava)”, it feels like dropping an album might’ve been a step too far for the wunderkind. One comes away from listening to this album thinking that a longer run of mixtapes, features and life experiences, might’ve led to a better album that would’ve better capitalised on Usimamane’s potential.
At a concise 41 minutes, the run time manages to feel longer than it should be. Multiple tracks sound like interesting ideas that were underdeveloped on this project. From the abrupt opening track, “The Kulture”, the rapper eschews song structure by spitting cool bars on a looping trap beat. While the song hints at what’s made him a first-round prospect, it’s over in a minute without much development in either the beat or the flow.
In truth, the real songs that feel like more than a freestyle, only start from “Discounts (feat. Youngsta CPT)”. This track has an interesting beat with a scene-stealing verse by Youngsta. It’s also at this point where we first experience the album’s two major problems: Transitions and features.
There seems to be minimal care put into track sequencing and the transitions between songs. Of course, this may portray how this album is intended to be consumed: As singles across various playlists. However, the vibe switches can be jarring. For example, a song about being anti-beef is followed by a ballad about struggling to show romantic vulnerability, which is followed by a generic guitar-type trap beat about perceived opps trying to end him.
It’s not that these particular ideas are incompatible sonically. But with stronger curation or song development, the latter song, “Can’t Hang”, could’ve easily been positioned as the reason for his anxiety towards experiencing love. Instead, it just comes across as three random songs that probably shouldn’t be in the same playlist.
On the features front, and this album is very collaborative, we see guests steal the show. On “BANK” with ANATII and Tony Dayimane, Usimamane is handily outshone by the former who proclaims himself as the Big Qhwa-Qhwi. Elsewhere, on the Nasty C-esque “Vegan”, the catchy beat and hook find Usimamane struggling to string and bling together a verse about pulling up with goons, while fellow Durbanite, Tellaman elegantly floats.
Unfortunately, the most of the best songs are carried by big-name features on this album. Whether due to unenergetic delivery, or production that feels a few years behind, the solo songs see the rapper sound either uninspired or overly derivative.
However, there are promising signs that Days Before MAUD isn’t an exercise in futility.
Closing track, “Kude” sees him lament how far he’s come over a dynamic piano-based ballad. This song shows his versatility as a crooner, who can make fully-fledged relatable songs with authenticity. He sounds most unencumbered with how he’ll be perceived and truly vulnerable on this song.
Based on glimpses of brilliance like this and other standouts like “Dangerous (feat Kase Klowzed)” and KO-assisted “Uphambene”, this release will certainly build a fanbase for Usimamane. Lest we forget, this charismatic artist exists in an era where albums simply aren’t consumed like they used to be, and he’s already inadvertently spawned a trending sound on TikTok with a voice note.
Looking ahead, Usimamane now has the great advantage of time. He can develop his craft and use real learnings from his first album on subsequent releases. Should he put this to good use, we’ll have a serious star on our hands.
