The Best Southern African Songs Right Now: July 2025 Edition

July brought a wave of standout releases from across Southern Africa. From the soulful sounds of Eswatini to the hard-hitting bars of Lesotho and South Africa, artists leaned into current trends while also referencing the past.

Tamyris Moiane - “Como eu Demorei” feat. Button Rose (Mozambique)

Falling in love is as ancient as time, yet the ways we express it and invite others into that labyrinth never grow old. On this dancehall-tinged jam, Tamyris Moiane and Button Rose wear their hearts on their sleeves, letting vulnerability lead the way. It's an awakening, an invitation to let your heart go entirely, and these two Mozambican artists hold your hand through the maze. Love brings light to darkness, a kiss awakens, and the promise of eternity ignites the spirit in unfathomable ways.

Tamy Moyo - "Unobhowa" (Zimbabwe)

"Unobhowa," meaning "you're tiresome" in Shona, is Tamy Moyo's latest offering to Zimbabwe's ever-evolving music scene. It carries the bounce of her previous releases, the grace that has sustained her journey, and the emotional punch that keeps listeners coming back. "I gave you all I have, but it was never enough," is a line no one should ever have to sing, but matters of the heart rarely play fair. The track captures the frustration of loving someone who constantly lets you down or grows emotionally distant, yet remains impossible to walk away from. It paints the portrait of a couple who can't go a week without arguing, while the singer struggles with the decision to leave or stay.

PatrickxxLee - "Home$ick" (South Africa/Zambia)

"Every time I drop, I create a new wave," declares the South Africa-based Zambian MC PatrickxxLee in a self-aware nod to the many sonic and lyrical lanes he's navigated across his career. With each release, he moves with quiet precision toward greatness, his verses simmering with intent, releasing fumes potent enough to etch his name into the legend books. The production is stripped yet emotive, built around guitar riffs that carry the haunting refrain, "wish I could go home," at the beginning, looping like a prayer or a curse before blossoming into a festival of synths later on in the song. It's a fitting backdrop for an artist who rides beats with rhythm and an undying resolve. This is a slow-burning epic.

Phoka Ea Boroa - “Maraba” (feat. Ntate Stunna & Sannere) (Lesotho)

The year opened with Ntate Stunna throwing subliminal disses on tracks like "Party Pooper" and "After School," fuelling speculation about a rift between him and Sannere – and by extension, Phoka Ea Boroa. But on the latter's sophomore album, Tebello, the three link up like Voltron, fulfilling a prophecy that's lingered in online forums for a while now. The project kicks off with a classic accordion sample, a direct nod to the Famo tradition that grounds their sound. What follows is a melodic and harmonic intervention: a bold infusion of modernity into a time-tested template.

On the line "ke tlamme Fito, ntho'e ba khonang ho e tlama ke puff," Ntate Stunna drops a slick shout-out to Famole and Mantša's crew, Fito – a flex only true music nerds will fully catch. The quotables come rapid-fire, too many to pick one. Just know that once you step into this world, you might not want to find your way out. This is a meticulously crafted sonic experience.

Jinji Boolin - "Umdali" feat. Ovuyonke (South Africa)

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On the biggest release of his career so far, South African producer Jinji Boolin teams up with one of the country's best-kept secrets: Ovuyonke, a vocalist whose meditative range weaves ancestral harmonies into a sonic tapestry that bridges past and future. "Umdali," meaning "creator," is a heartfelt letter to higher powers, an offering of gratitude for the gift of life despite all odds. This is a potent, culture-rooted sound. The track rests on a folksy guitar loop, anchors itself with a deep, resonant bassline, and lifts off with delicate string flourishes that carry the listener above the clouds. Haunting and transcendent.

KaeB - "Dimakatso" feat. Flex The Ninja (South Africa)

South African beat culture remains unmatched, a never-ending faucet, flowing fresh and full of life day in and day out. Johannesburg producer KaeB emerged during the golden wave of SoundCloud-era beatmakers, when a new vanguard was just starting to define the sound of the future. Since then, he's connected with some of the most exciting voices in the scene, including soul star Marcus Harvey. On "Dimakatso," he taps into a funky, infectious frequency that swings with undeniable swagger. Flex the Ninja handles vocals, repeating the line "O hlabisa lihlong" ("you're embarrassing") with surgical intent, cutting through the mix with style and bite. Add lush harmonies and slick ad-libs, and you've got a track that practically demands movement. Just try not to break your neck when that groove locks in.

Trillion Petals - "Lucky Girl Manta" (South Africa/UK)

Fuzzy, melancholic, edgy, yet ultimately delightful. These are just some of the words that come to mind when encountering Alison Rachel's music. Having cut her teeth with Honeymoan, the Cape Town-rooted band known for its genre-defying, indie-rooted sound, she's now stepping into the spotlight with solo work that unleashes her full creative force as Trillion Petals. "Lucky Girl Mantra" captures the contradictions of the human condition: the god-complex, I-can-do-it-all persona clashing with its gloomy, self-effacing shadow. The result is an indie rock marvel.

iYA - "Before I Go" (Eswatini)

Emerging in 2022 from the fertile musical ground of the Kingdom of Eswatini, where country, hip-hop, folk, and electronic sounds mingle freely, Iya is a hidden gem. On I Feel Deeply her emotionally charged debut album co-written with Manana, her voice feels weightless and grounded at the same time, carrying the kind of presence that silences a room. The spaces between her lyrics speak as loudly as the words themselves: breathing, pausing for effect, echoing with something eternal and something agile and unbroken. "I will learn to learn to use my head," she sings, a cautionary reflection on love gone wrong, a vow to break the loop of old mistakes. "Happiness is ancient news / I swore I'd follow my heart," she wails later, her voice stretching between heartbreak and hard-won clarity. Iya is a rare kind of artist, possessing a vulnerability that demands your attention.

San The Instrumonumentalist & Snazz Da Dictator - "Tarantula Hawks" (Lesotho, South Africa)

Lesotho's San The Instrumentalist has been steadily carving out a formidable catalogue, collaborating with heavyweights from the global underground – Hus Kingpin, Holstar, Damola, and more. On "Tarantula Hawks," he finally links up with South African legend Snazz Da Dictator – a living, breathing archive of hip-hop, and a key figure from Johannesburg's iconic Le Club era. Snazz proves, once again, why he's one of the greats, still razor-sharp, still relentless. He nods to his legacy ("Khoi-San witta walkman," from Cashless Society's "Hottentop Hop Bantu 1,2") while slicing through the beat with venom: "That's a Beggars Opera n I'm a fetish monster/squelching hecklers like propellers on decrepit choppers." He hunts rhyme schemes like they were prey, and San is right behind him, backing up with the gulliest production around.