The Many Phases and Faces of Stogie T

From Tumi Molekane to Stogie T

Much like South Africa and its neighbors, Stogie T’s earlier identity still binds him to a set of expectations that inadvertently link back to his past. He is the rapper that rap fans project their idealized versions of a radical emcee onto, and expect him to act accordingly. Part of Molekane's choice to go as Stogie T was to escape this endless scrutiny.

Where Molekane was a poet/emcee with a stringent set of values and a didactic worldview, Stogie T is the grownup version that understands how unpredictable and complex life can be. Stogie T is the flawed version of the flawless rapper that produced classics like “Yvonne” and “’76”. Stogie T is the truth that escaped smoke and mirrors to embrace reality.

There were naysayers who were unwilling to free him from their fantasies in 2016 when this switch happened. His self-titled debut with his new name was met with endless scrutiny, mostly from a portion of his fanbase who felt strongly about rap's evolution; who felt that “mumble rap,” whatever that is, was obscuring the light beams meant to be occupied by “the real shit,” whatever that means.

But Stogie T was rapping as hard as Tumi Molekane was — perhaps even harder, to disprove the doomsayers. So what was it that people were raging against? It was the refusal that offended them. We do it to public figures all the time when we expect them to perform the reality we've formed in our heads and berate them for non-adherence.

Being a child of the struggle and its influences

With his parents deeply involved in the struggle against apartheid, Stogie T spent time traveling around the world with his mother — he lost his father at a very early age. They had stints in Denmark and in the United States of America, but the longest stay he remembers, outside of Tanzania, was in Zambia. He’s the proverbial child of exile, born of freedom fighters who instilled in him a love for the African continent that isn’t just conceptual, but experiential.

This broad view of the world gifted Stogie T a refined taste that sets the emcee apart from the run-of-the-mill South African rapper. It’s why he has managed to survive this long purely off of rap.

He is one of the best live performers South Africa has, a fact not celebrated enough considering the dearth of artists who can deliver an outstanding show irrespective of the setting. He can cold-rock a party in true school hip-hop fashion, as seen through his collaborative work with the French deejay collective, Chinese Man. He has curated groundbreaking albums such as Reason’s Audio 3D, and still finds time to be an unflinching lyricist whose pen’s darts remain sharpened for anyone that tries to test.

New EP, Shallow

Stogie T's latest outing, Shallow, is an ambitious attempt at conceptual art. It teleports listeners to an era that the emcee declared himself a product of. While sharing the story of its genesis in an IG Live preview on the night leading up to its release, Stogie T said, “The ‘80s… kind of represent my childhood first. [They’re] very nostalgic for me. But also, this is the South Africa that I had in my mind before I even stepped on the soil.”

The ‘80s in South Africa were a tumultuous era, the dying screams of a wounded apartheid system, soundtracked by Lucky Dube’s reggae music, Chicco Twala and Brenda Fassie’s disco, and Stimela’s Afro-rock. “People, they hate on disco, they think the ‘80s was just like, bad music. But I felt that, you know, in South Africa, we made something really amazing,” he added.

Shallow represents a man who is comfortable in his own skin, embraces the breadth of his flaws and is human enough to exhibit joy in song form. Stogie T references everything, from war criminals (Slobodan Milosevic and Sani Abacha), revolutionaries and scholars (Steve Biko, Frantz Fanon, Winnie Mandela), to RnB stars and rappers (Luther Vandross and Raekwon the Chef), and historical events (Chief Sekhukhune’s resistance against the Boers).

“‘80s Love” is decadent, “Get Back,” is reminiscent, “Too Late for Mama” brings to life a forgotten past, “Shallow” is a scream from the depths of depravity, “Biko’s Ghost” is haunting, its bassline recalls the darkest days of our oppression, and “Dux Africanus” re-focuses our attention to the present moment.

The music is composed by Shane Cooper, himself an accomplished artist renowned in jazz and electronic circles for his uncompromising pursuit of potent perfection.

Stogie T remains undefeated. He is a scholarly champion of intricate rap bars, and a unique and rare presence who exceeds his potential with every iteration. Shallow will grow on you with every listen.