Nasty C’s new podcast is about ‘my side of the music’

The ‘Strings and Bling’ artist began elevating his career in 2020 when he signed to Def Jam Africa’s big-name roster of top African artists, including Boity, Cassper Nyovest, Nadia Nakai, Tshego, Tellaman, Ricky Tyler, Larry Gaaga and Vector. And following the release of the Zulu Man With Some Power album in late August, Nasty C’s career has been on a meteoric rise.

This year promises to be no different for Nasty C, whose ‘Black & White’, featuring American R&B singer Ari Lennox, was named as the lead single of the Coming 2 America soundtrack. Last week, the two performed the song on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. The performance followed Nasty C’s appearance on Late Night With Seth Meyers in 2020.

News of his Ellen performance trended on social media, along with a recent announcement of his new podcast series, in partnership with AMPD Studios in Johannesburg.

“This podcast is pretty much a deep dive into my side of the music, the experiences that I went through – the good and the bad, the ups and the downs,” Nasty C said at the launch of his Zulu Man With Some Power Podcast. “This is giving people a clear insight of what it is like to be me.”

Responding to what made him partner with AMPD Studios, the ‘They Don’t’ hitmaker said, “It just worked,” adding that the idea to launch a podcast was not inspired by “a person per se. I really felt like it was time to tell my fans what’s going on the inside of the curtain. I don’t really snap a lot, I don’t go live, so my fans don’t really know what’s happening unless someone else posts it. So, it would be nice if it came from me this time.”

Nasty C also told Music In Africa that streaming had been a godsent for African artists and their success, echoing the sentiments of Universal Music South Africa and sub-Saharan Africa CEO Sipho Dlamini during a recent interview.

“It [the streaming business] definitely spat out a lot of things,” Nasty C said. ”I feel like if we were still in the times where everything was physical, it would be much harder to be known outside of my country or continent. But now with streaming, someone in Tokyo can hear my song on Instagram and find it instantly. That’s money in my pocket, instantly.”

Nasty C also revealed that he was planning to relocate to the US, “to make things work quicker, you know. I am always going to be back and forth. The plan was to do three months in the US before COVID-19 and three months here.”

So what makes Nasty C a proud South African artist? “My art. The meaning behind it, the purpose behind it, the stories behind it, the motivation that it gives out, how it inspires people, how it proves that you can be different and be yourself a thousand percent.”

Watch the Zulu Man With Some Power Podcast series here.