The African Music You Need to Hear This Week

Every week, OkayAfrica highlights the top African music releases — including the latest Afrobeats and amapiano hits — through our best music column, African Music You Need to Hear This Week.

Read ahead for our round-up of the best new African music tracks and music videos that came across our desks this week.

Ciza - "Yivule"

South Africa has been a hive for house music since the ’80s, when resistance meant fighting apartheid during the day and slipping away at night — even if only briefly — to dance to imported Chicago house records at underground raves. That fascination has evolved in layers, and today Afro-house is a global force, due in no small part to the country’s role in shaping the sound. It’s why an artist like Ciza feels built for longevity. His understanding of house music is homegrown in the most literal sense: his mother, Nhlanhla Mafu of Mafikizolo acclaim, is among the local pioneers of the sound. Beyond that, he comes from an ecosystem that lives and breathes the music. “Isaka” introduced him as a global force; with “Yivule,” he raises the stakes even higher. His album, Ciza’s Palace, drops on June 5.

BNXN, Sarz - "Back Outside"

BNXN had to change his name a few years ago following pushback from Buju Banton. That moment resurfaced this week during the reggae and dancehall star’s sit-down with Fat Joe on the Joe and Jada podcast. BNXN doubled down by taking it straight downstairs. “Back Outside,” his latest with Sarz, who’s fresh off a Coachella showcase, is another addition to his growing catalog of hits. It’s early summer music: the kind that soundtracks long days chasing sunsets that melt into warm nights and good times.

Baby Daiz - "Coupé"

“Vuvuzelas whenever I enter,” raps Baby Daiz on “Coupé,” a line reminiscent of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. It's a pocket he first locked into on “Matisa,” and continues to refine here. This is Congolese maximalism; it’s art on wax, heat that melts an entire candle collection. You have to listen with your body; anything less misses the point. Baby Daiz’s evolution from an upstart rapper in South Africa to one of the continent’s most promising stars is a case study in trusting instinct and looking inward.

Nduduzo Makhathini - "Imvunge KaNtu"

With each passing year, Nduduzo Makhathini finds new ways to pull listeners deeper into his creative universe. His output, whether as a bandleader, collaborator, or producer, remains expansive and immersive. His thinking around jazz extends beyond sound. He weaves indigenous knowledge systems into established frameworks — within the academy and the music industry alike — creating a language that exists at the margins while remaining rooted at the center. “Imvunge KaNtu,” the second single from his upcoming album The Myth We Choose (out June 26 via Universal/Blue Note), leans further into the trio format he’s been touring with: South African bassist Dalisu Ndlazi and Cuban drummer Lumkil Perez. It’s a place of openness and possibility, guided by Makhathini’s globalist lens.

Fola - "fine ting (fine $hit)"

Fola is laid-back, unbothered, and assured in his craft. “fine ting (fine $hit)” works at any hour, but really shines in the in-between moments: pre-drinks, recovery mode, or gearing up for something big. It’s universal music; you slip into it as much as it settles around you.

Teni, Olamide - "Zion"

Teni’s voice is a national treasure. The way she shapes it — how it moves within the music and alongside collaborators — sets her apart. “Zion,” a country-leaning collaboration with Olamide, feels warm and restorative. “So many people judge me, but I don’t care,” she sings. It’s a song about refuge; about the people who offer safety and love, and understand without interrogation.

Akeeda - "Expiry"

Based in Cape Town, Akeeda draws from a timeless folk tradition that sits at the heart of their sound. “Expiry” is a study in lyrical vulnerability. “I can’t breathe / I hide it well so you can’t see the very death of me,” sings the vocalist, Akeedah Keet—a note to a lover, and a reckoning with the quiet violence of unreciprocated love. “You’re lying in my bed, telling me your plans and your dreams / and I start to realize that in them there’s no place for me, and it’s bittersweet,” she rallies, heartbreak disguised as poetry. The music is gentle, almost as if it’s tending to the wound it reveals, soothing the ache of an inevitable ending.

Rouge - "Siyabangena"

Rouge is an emcee’s emcee. Commanding and unafraid, she can stand toe-to-toe with the best and still leave her imprint. “Siyabangena,” alongside K.Keed, is proof of what a honed pen can unlock. Produced by Mashbeatz and Wichi1080, the track moves between early-2000s South African commercial house, its kwaito roots, and a third, more indulgent space where hip-hop and dance meet without restraint.