Loxion Kulca

Kwaito is a music genre that is known for being the voice of young African people, it indicates the struggles and joys that people living in townships have had to endure. Kwaito is not only verbal, but now visual too. Loxion Kulca is a clothing brand that reflects the streets and lifestyle of urban Africa through its range of incredible hand crafted clothing items; this is a brand that embraces its roots and expresses its heritage through its Loxion Kulca roots initiative. This initiative is a way of LK embracing where they came from and a way of making sure they stay grounded, by selling knitted products made by producers in townships. Loxion Kulca was created in 1997 by Mogale and his partner Wandi Nzimande, it all started when people started asking where they could buy crocheted skull caps like the ones they were wearing, the caps took off and the clothing range followed. “Loxion” is a slang derivative of “location”, apartheids label for areas designated for black people, now classified as “townships”. The business/brand is very much based on the principle of “Ubuntu” which means “respecting your fellow man and therefore, respecting yourself, and having pride in your country.” Loxion Kulca clothing can be bought across the country from 150 outlets and in Botswana, Swaziland and Namibia. The brand had also gone abroad selling merchandise in the US, Europe and Australia, with plans to export to China and Japan. Now Kwaito is not only a music genre but a lifestyle too, reflecting South African culture and history.

How Kwaito began.

It started off with western house music which the clubs in townships then slowed down, adding an African twist to the mix by throwing in some traditional African instruments as well as elements of African jazz, it was then that Kwaito was born. The style of Kwaito also incorporates other genres of music such as Hip Hop, R&B, dancehall and Disco. Kwaito was created in the townships of Soweto, near Johannesburg, where it became the voice of the younger generation growing up in these areas, it wasn’t just music, it represented times of struggle, it became a lyrical crutch that the younger generation could lean on to express how they felt, as well as the hardships their people had to endure. Kwaito was a success in townships, as this genre of music didn’t require tons of fancy/expensive equipment or special musical training, it could be made with the little that was available in townships- Kwaito is more about what the artist has to say through his or her lyrics not about what was used to make the music. This is a genre that was started from a struggle, from nothing at all really, but has grown to become the voice of the country; the heart beat of the nation.

Kwaito style

Now this is what i would classify as a Kwaito Diva :P

Our Beat

It starts off with a heartbeat.  A simple beat that gets you by nine whole months, a beat that comforts you, defines you. From the comfort of a monotonous beat you are thrown into a world of chaos, a world where you must choose which rhythm to listen to, which beat to embrace. Rhythm is something that will never leave you, it is everywhere.  Rhythm is that deafening ring in a moment of dead silence, it is the hum of cars from a near by freeway or a tick tick tick of a pencil held by an anxious student. Rhythm is found in the tempo of a thunderstorm or the dripping of a loose tap.  It is present in the breathing of two lovers or the laughter of two friends.  The combination of these rhythms gives us a beat, a beat that triggers different emotions, emotions that drive our behaviour.  A beat can characterize an entire country or nation and even bring enemies together. We are a nation that requires very little to make a great deal more, we have a beat that encompasses our heritage our struggle this beat is a part of who we are, this beat is Kwaito.

Like Chalk and Cheese

“As different as chalk and cheese.” This is an old expression and the earliest citation is in John Gower's Middle English text Confessio Amantis, 1390: ‘Lo, how they feignen chalk for chese.’ To this day I’ve never understood why chalk and cheese would ever find themselves in the same sentence or how they’d ever be compatible, in fact they never will be, unless you’re into taking unlikely combinations to another level. If so I may have something that’ll tickle those strange taste buds of yours. Kwaicore. Just like chalk and cheese Kwaicore consists of two of the most unlikely genres of music, Kwaito and Punk. You’re thinking no that must sound like a cats baptism but you are wrong. It’s time to prepare those inquisitive taste buds of yours because you may just be presently surprised. Remember the first time you heard it, the thrill, the sudden rush of anger, the adrenaline rushing through your veins, that spontaneous feeling of wanting to make shit and fuck shit up, that moment when you really don’t give a shit what anybody thinks about you. That’s what punk is all about, the feeling, the raw energy. Now mix that with the catchy melodic and percussive loop samples, deep bass lines, and vocals of Kwaito and you have yourself a new fresh musical sensation that puts chalk and cheese to shame.