Spoek Mathambo

Spoek Mathambo is the stage name of South African artist Nthato Mokgata. At the vanguard of a new wave of African artists, Spoek is hitting the world hard with his take on Afro-futurism - a unique vision of electronic music. The Johannesburg native started rapping at the young age of 10 and was as much influenced by 90s American rap as the growing wave of Johannesburg hip-hop. Spoek moved to Cape Town to study in 2003, where he met and worked with prominent South African producers, Sibot and Markus Wormstorm, forming the respective duos Playdoe and Sweat X, with whom he found his first international success.

In August 2010, Spoek released his debut solo album, 'Mshini Wam', on BBE Records. With 'Mshini Wam' (as well as his HIVIP mix series), Spoek coined the genre/style Township Tech, a way of describing his own as well as his contemporaries’ work in furthering the soundscape of South African house music. The album garnered critical and fan acclaim, partly due to award-winning music videos for songs such as ‘Control’ (a cover of Joy Division’s ‘She’s Lost Control’). Following the release, Spoek enjoyed a sizeable amount of international press coverage, from a Fader Magazine cover feature to favorable reviews in The Guardian, Spin, Urb, XL8R, Dazed Digital, DJ Mag and NME, among others.

Spoek has collaborated with the Copenhagen-based producer Chllngr as well as his Cape Town-based live band, also called Mshini Wam. He has toured extensively in the USA, South America and Europe. In 2011 he signed a multi-album deal with the legendary Seattle-based imprint, Sub Pop, releasing 'Father Creeper' (2012). It was followed in 2013 by 'Future Sound of Mzansi', released locally by Sony. He is married to Swedish artist Gnucci Banana and is currently based in Sweden. He continues to produce and perform regularly, most recently fronting the group Fantasma. In 2014 he released a documentary film on new South African music, 'Future Sound of Mzansi', with Lebogang Rasethaba.