On the Scene in Cape Town: Locals Talk About the Latest Trends in Their City

What makes Cape Town’s music scene so unique? DJs and musicians here experiment a lot with different styles of music and are constantly inventing new subgenres. Gqom, for example, is an energetic form of house music with driving beats. Amapiano, on the other hand, is a smoother version of house music that gets people dancing with rhythmic percussion. 

We also mix sounds from all parts of Cape Town at our gigs, because our aim is to bring people from all parts of the city together – whether they are rich or poor, black or white. Four times a year, on Freedom Day, Youth Day, Heritage Day, and Reconciliation Day, we organize a festival with live music, stalls from local fashion labels, and food from all over the country. In 2023, we opened our first own restaurant called Therapy in the Gardens district, where we not only serve excellent steaks and cocktails, but also host concerts by local musicians every Sunday.

Together with Loyiso, which is DJ Loyd’s first name, I grew up in the township of Khayelitsha. We always wanted to create a style of music that would be relevant to people in our neighborhood, but also in all other parts of the city. That’s why we perform all over Cape Town and have opened a restaurant in the city center where most of the places are still run by white people. I believe that music has the power to break down barriers and bring people from all parts of society together. We are all one!

Here are a few tips for people who are curious about Cape Town’s music scene: One of the best addresses for hip-hop, R & B, and gqom music is Coco nightclub in the city center. At Sunday’s live sessions in the Asoka restaurant in nearby Kloof Street, funk and jazz bands perform every week, and at Café Caprice in Camps Bay you can sip cocktails with a view of the sea and bounce your legs to the beat of house music.

Vincent Mvelase Manzini – aka Sir Vincent – grew up together with Loyiso Mdebuka – aka DJ Loyd – in Cape Town’s Khayelitsha township. With their mix of hip-hop, house music, and Afrobeats, the DJ duo is shaping the sound of the city.