The April issue of SMag, out tomorrow, is themed under the tagline “Rewrite the Classics”.
So who is rewriting the classics? Amapiano sensation Zee Nxumalo soars to new heights on the first of three covers of SMag. Entering the music scene in late 2023, the 22-year-old musician quickly became the name of everyone’s lips with hits AmaGear, Ngisakuthanda, Thula Mabota Funk 55.
On the second cover is fellow Amapiano supernova Young Stunna, who continues to skyrocket to superstardom. After the release of his commercially successful debut offering Notumato in 2021, he is ready to drop a follow-up album this year.
Lerai Rakoditsoe is no longer the new kid on the block, she continues on her stratospheric rise to the top on the third cover. The 22-year-old TV presenter, doing her final year in politics and international relations at the University of Pretoria, tells SMag how she plans to change the world.
Football legend Teko Modise fronts the cover of SMan. Beyond the pitch, life after football has been rewarding for "The General".
Ahead of the issue dropping tomorrow, here are some highlights from the cover stars:
Young Stunna on learning to save money:
My first hundred thousand, I didn’t know what to do with it, I locked myself in my room in disbelief. I was like, ‘This is my first R100k, what am I going to do about it?’ I went crazy. I made my first million in my first year, it was crazy. I spent money recklessly and then I learnt to save. I’m saving a lot now.
Nxumalo on how smash hit AmaGear was created:
Each song I do relates to the era that I’m in. I was in an era in which I felt as though my dreams were coming true. Thukzin flew me to Durban just for a studio session. I thought it was crazy that they had booked accommodation and flights just for me to sing. ‘What if I don’t give you a hit?
How can you risk all that money and time just for me to come and sing?’ The lyrics speak to that, how we have switched into a new gear and are on another level.
Modise on his post-retirement shift into business and broadcasting:
It seemed seamless to others, but it was difficult to be in a boardroom with people who had gone to school. My insecurities started to kick in a bit, but once I was accepted, I took the responsibility upon myself [to ensure that] those who come after me will reach greater heights than I did.
Modise on the biggest misconception about him:
People think I’m arrogant, but maybe that has changed over the years. I had to work hard to remove that tag. I needed to get rid of the wall. I built such a high wall and was protective of my name. But [this] was also because I was insecure based on how the media portrayed me.
Rakoditsoe on how she plans to change the world:
I have no idea right now, but I can see myself in an international organisation that has Africa’s interests at its core. Maybe being part of the AU and being part of the people who transform a powerful entity like the AU. I’m about collaboration, so, getting great minds and ideas together and working together to solve problems, whatever that may look like, that’s what my career is going to be.
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