South Africa's music scene is bursting with immense talent, who are continually striving to make their dreams come true and achieve success.
Musician Basetsana Maluleka, popularly known as Bassie, is taking up space as she makes a name for herself. Hailing from Windmill Park, Boksburg, the vocalist has been releasing music that is being well received by her fans.
Last year she won her first Metro FM Music Awards for Best Music Video for her collaboration "Izenzo" with Aymos, and now she is nominated in the 2024 Basadi Music Awards.
“It’s all happening so fast for me and it comes with so much joy,” she tells IOL.
Her hit single "Kwelanga" with M-Touch and Ranger, which debuted in October 2023 on Showmax's hit drama series "Adulting", has been hugely successful, even achieving Gold Certification.
“I’m in disbelief! The song is moving so fast; faster than I ever expected.
“Creating ‘Kwelanga’ was a breath of fresh air for me. It was like writing my pain into a diary and expressing how much pain I felt, but through a song.”
Bassie featured Tman Xpress and LeeMcKrazy on "Kwelanga 2.0", which has crossed the milestone of 2,831,250 pure audio streams in South Africa.
The accompanying lyric video has amassed 1.6 million views on YouTube and 45.4 million views and over 52,000 user creations on TikTok.
“It’s been nothing but a dream!
“Mainly because we had no idea that we would be able to work with the likes of TmanExpress and Leemkcrazy. Texting them for the feature was a test of luck and I can say we were very lucky.”
As a young woman, Bassie is showing that she can achieve her dreams, break barriers and also monetise her talent while at it. Being a woman breaking barriers makes the young star feel “empowered; like anything is possible and I am capable of anything”.
“A lot of things that I have done seemed close to impossible, especially with the massive intense amount of competition in this genre. Breaking all these barriers has made me more confident, and I believe and trust in myself more and more everyday.”
Bassie has high hopes for herself, she hopes in the next five years to complete her studies in Bachelor of Education in Foundation Phase at the University of Free State and be able to help her siblings with their studies.
“I want to be an international artist, and see growth within my craft by also indulging and exploring other genres in the music space. I would also love to do something like presenting or acting.”
IOL Entertainment