Today in the spirit of gratitude and constantly pushing creative boundaries, Ndlovu Youth Choir drops their album ‘Grateful’ with their lead single ‘Afrika Hey’ featuring Sun El Musician on all digital platforms today. Listen here.
Since the inception of the Ndlovu Youth Choir 13 years ago, the talented collective has become one of the world’s most beloved and celebrated choirs. The Ndlovu Youth Choir has come far from performing at America’s Got Talent, creating soul-stirring renditions of well-known covers to collaborating with critically acclaimed artists on original songs. “We feel that there are so many young people around the world waiting for their chance to show what they can do, and we are extremely fortunate to get the opportunity to do that on some of the world’s biggest stages. We are humbled to represent the potential and untapped talents of millions of young, African people around the world; and we hope to use every opportunity that comes our way to showcase that.”
Speaking on collaborating with Sun-EL on their new single “Afrika hey”, the choir said: “There has been great synergy between us and Sun-El Musician; creating a song together was a natural progression of that relationship. ‘Afrika Hey’ celebrates the beauty of Africa and encourages people to be proud of the continent and share that pride wherever they may travel around the world. We live in such a beautiful country, and we all have a responsibility to share this with the world. The choir alongside Sun-El Musician and Director Bruce Patterson of Pilot Films shot the video for “Afrika Hey” this past Tuesday in Braamfontein. Fans and audiences can expect to experience Beauty, Jozi, Africa and a lot of energy! in the form of “Afrika Hey” Visuals. Watch the BTS HERE.
The new album stays true to Ndlovu’s unique sound, style and breath-taking harmonies, with a mix of Amapiano and hip hop on the five original tracks. The 14-track project hosts several collaborations namely with rapper 25K, Sun-El Musician, Tyler ICU and the National Youth Choirs of Great Britain. “We chose to work with people who are passionate about music and uplifting young people and we are very honoured to have collaborated with 25k, Sun El-Musician, Tyler ICU and the National Youth Choirs of Great Britain. It’s been exciting moving into the amapiano genre and working with DJs and rappers. Who would have thought a choir would be rapping on an original song? It shows our creative progression.”
When asked about the album, the choir said: “The process of working on the album was intense yet a lot of fun and also very creative. We have five original tracks and it was very exciting to move out of our comfort zone, get creative and collaborating with fantastic artists and choirs.” The ‘Grateful’ album is a way for us to thank everyone for their love and support over the years. We hope and pray that this album will inspire the youth to be the best they can be and remind the world to give young people a chance whenever and wherever they can.”
What’s next for NYC? The choir shared; “We are very excited to have received numerous exciting local and international performance opportunities; since the pandemic we have already spread our wings locally and abroad. This is an exciting time for us but most importantly we aim to keep our feet on the ground. We will never forget where we come from and our dream is to continue inspiring young people.”
