Good music provides an ideal reflection of the times we live through as human beings, hence some rappers / poets have constantly referred to themselves as the voice of the streets. In the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, the tiny African Kingdom of Eswatini has also been plagued with a political unrest which has affected a number of critical services such as public transport and the public health services.
As a result, a few artists from the Kingdom were inspired by the recent events to make music. Code268 as the Eswatini Hip-Hop hub tasked itself with compiling a few releases that were inspired by the political unrest to eventually come up with “The Unrest Playlist“.
1. Young Zesh – Inhlupheko
Young Zesh is relatively a new name to most people in Eswatini. The rapper has been dubbed the voice of the youth due to the success of his latest song called Inhlupheko, a cover of Big Zulu’s song Inhlupheko. Young Zesh raps about the difficulties faced by the Eswatini youth such as soaring unemployment rates and a constantly widening economic inequality.
2. Lyrikal Busta and Sean Cast – Bacede (ft. K-Darrow)
One of two singles released from Lyrikal Busta and Sean Cast’s 2021 EP Prayers of a Hustler. Inspired by the vocal Hosea Member of Parliament, Mduduzi Mabuza, famously known as Bacede. K-Darrow, who is label mates with Sean Cast & Lyrikal Busta at Upscale Live delivers a sleek sounding hook that is hard to forget thus earning this song a spot on the Unrest Playlist.
3. Mr Kangaroo – Pray for Eswatini
This is award winning producer Mr Kangaroo’s collaborative effort with renowned Eswatini based artists such as Kena. This song was recorded after the fatal protests which occurred on June 29, 2021 and the title of the song is pretty much self explanatory.
4. Cupid – It’ll All Be Over (ft. Smaggz)
