Listen to Sjava’s Sophomore Album ‘Umqhele’

Sjava returns with a follow-up to his 2016 debut.

Listen to Sjava’s Sophomore Album ‘Umqhele’
Sjava. Photo by Sabelo Mkhabela.

Grammy nominated and BET Award-winning South African artist Sjava returns with his sophomore album Umqhele. The 18-track album sees the artist and his main producer Ruff build upon the ATM sound, adding some musical elements, like the saxophone on "Linda," and the musicality of songs like "Ikhandlela," and "Eweni" among several others.


To pay homage to his maskandi roots, Sjava features Mzukulu and Anzo on the song "Eweni." Sjava's music is still deeply rooted in love, personal stories, motivation and inspiration, and his songs are still emotive and are sung with a sense of urgency.

Umqhele includes 17 new songs and "Confession," which appeared on his EP Umphako, which he dropped in July. Sjava released his first album, Isina Muva, in 2016 to critical and commercial acclaim and has since gone on to win a BET Viewers Choice Award and appeared on the Grammy-nominated Black Panther, The Album compilation project.

The cover artwork for OkayAfrica’s Best West African Songs of 2024 list featuring Ayra Starr and Tems.
Latest

The Best West African Songs of 2024

This year’s list features emerging talents and an uptick in artists reaching to the past to create new sounds.

Umqhele was one of the most anticipated albums of 2018, as everyone was curious to hear what the genre-bending artist had up his sleeves.

Download Umqhelehere.


‎Umqhele by Sjavaitunes.apple.com


‎Album · 2018 · 18 Songs

The cover artwork for OkayAfrica’s Best West African Songs of 2024 list featuring Ayra Starr and Tems.
Latest

The Best West African Songs of 2024

This year’s list features emerging talents and an uptick in artists reaching to the past to create new sounds.

A man stands on a stage, wearing a denim jacket and pants while holding up a hand fan.
News

With “Sade,” Adekunle Gold Challenged The Nigerian Music Industry

As “Sade” turns 10, we take a look at how Adekunle Gold provided an alternative template to being a Nigerian superstar by making music with soul and commercial merits.