Nan Kolè

Given its meteoric rise in the past couple of years – and accompanying co-signs from Kode9 to Stormzy –  it’s strange to think that until relatively recently Gqom was a hyper-local sound specific to a small community of producers in Durban, South Africa.

Nan Cole has facilitated much of this success, breaking the high-octane genre and its originators to a global audience via his label Gqom Oh! and the 2016 compilation of the same name.

More recently, Kolè has channeled a renewed interest in solo production into an EP for Bristol imprint Black Acre entitled Malumz, which draws on pan-African collective PepeSoup for inspiration and features remixes from Gqom Oh! mainstays Citizen Boy and Formation Boyz.

Speaking via email, Nan Kolè explains the concept behind his Crack Mix:

“[The mix] showcases the different styles coming out from Durban with bits of Gqom, Sghubhu and a few forthcoming bits coming out on Gqom Oh! Some of the tracks in here like Enkwarini from Emo Kid and Okmalumkoolkat with Rude Boyz, Bhizer (Qobisiqolo) are currently destroying dancefloors in Durban.”

Malumz is released via Black Acre on April 14. Nan Kolè appears at the launch for No Bounds Festival, Sheffield on June 9