Apple Music has debuted a new platform designed to emphasize key members of Africa’s rapidly expanding electronic dance music community. Isgubhu, derived from a Zulu word for “beat,” will spotlight and curate playlists of African electronic music sub-genres ranging from the funky techno-inspired Gqom to the house music variant Kwaito.
The platform’s launch came with the debut Isgubhu Voices playlist, hosting South African DJ and producer Black Coffee on its first-ever cover. Having recently released his sophomore album Subconsciously, Black Coffee stated of the feature,
“It’s a true honour to be titled as the very first Isgubhu hero artist by my friends at Apple Music. To me, home is everything… the absolute core of my being. Bringing the sounds of South Africa to the world is a life-long mission I’ll never stop chasing after.”
The launch of Isgubhu lands as part of a broader Apple Music initiative to increase their presence in the African music streaming market and give musicians from Africa a global spotlight. Isgubhu is now available in 37 African countries including Nigeria, Madagascar, and Tanzania.
