South Africa’s Thandi Draai is a rising star of the country’s expanding electronic music scene and has been picking up plaudits from fellow DJs, producers, and the media for some time. Now she arrives with her first full-length offering in the form of ‘Africa Gets Physical’ Vol.4, an album packed with music hand-picked from across the continent. When We Dip caught up with the Johannesburg-based artist to discuss her music and more.

WWD: Welcome to When We Dip, Thandi Draai. We look forward to taking a moment to speak about your incredible compilation album of African musical talent ‘Africa Gets Physical Vol. 4’. It’s a strong start to 2022, how are you feeling about the year ahead?

“Siyabonga” for this dope invite. This has to be one of my most powerful starts to any year as this is the first album/compilation I have ever curated. I have so many emotions right now! I’m excited, I’m nervous, I’m inspired, I’m feeling so much it’s insane, lol. I’m super excited for the rest of the years to come. This project taught me so much. I have grown so much in this intense and intimate compilation. I can feel it in my soul, only goodness can come from such beautiful music. Let’s goooooo…

WWD: ‘Africa Gets Physical Vol. 4’ is a celebration of Afro House, can you tell us how the project started out?

Every year Get Physical releases its ‘Africa Gets Physical’ album series, and last year, our very own Afro Tech King, Blanka Mazimela featured one of my tracks, ‘IRIS’ in his selection and passed the torch to me. I was so honored and couldn’t wait to curate a selection of unapologetic African Techno stories!

WWD: The album features a star-studded cast of artists hailing from the continent, how did you meet and pick each artist to work with for the project?

I’m super inspired and in love with Africa’s diversity. We’re rich with so much culture and spirituality. When we express that in our music, it’s insane, it’s magic! I really can’t explain, you have to feel it! So, with that, I had to search for some of Africa’s best Afro Tech storytellers. My quest started out in Kenya where Saint Evo, set the tone with Tuhan and the rest was epic! We got some sauce from Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa and Mozambique. We really wanted to express Africa. The collection is energy/synergy based, the artists involved understood the assignment and delivered true African stories. There are songs of hope, strength, love, faith, it’s an intense African Tech experience. I had a picture in heart of what it should sound like and the artists made it come alive. Camagu!

WWD: What can you tell us about your own journey in music so far?

I have always had an intense relationship with music from a very young age. Music is my love language. Since I connected with music, I’ve been high key obsessed lol, I wanted to know everything about it, how to make it, sing on it and play it. I started out as a vocalist and have been working on DJing and producing in the background to date. In most of my journey, I’ve been fortunate to have met and got inspired by such amazing artists! The road has not always been sunflowers though lol, it’s been tough getting through with the daily challenges one faces in everyday life. You have to work through the doubts and anxieties thrown at you and still deliver beautiful music, you have to see yourself through! That alone is an art on its own, lol. I’ve also unlearnt a lot and discovered so much more. I’m still hungry to learn more and master my own musical journey, I learn something new every day and can’t wait to share those visions.

WWD: You quickly rose to recognition within the African House scene and as such have become an advocate for other rising talent as is evident on this album, are there any specific artists we should not be sleeping on who you’d like to shine a light on?

I would love to shine a light on every artist involved. This project needed each and every input from, vocals, to songwriting to production, All I can say is please follow and research each artist, they are insanely gifted in what they do! You can just feel it in the compilation, they gave everything! I’m super proud! So, with that being said, I’d like to shine a light on the whole compilation, don’t sleep on our African Techno experience, there is something special for everyone.

WWD: What’s the greatest thing about the South African scene you can share with those not familiar with the awesome arts present in the country?

Ooooh Man, music in S.A is something else it’s our daily bread, lol, so when we go to grooves especially Afrotech shows, it’s more than just going out to dance, it’s intense, the energy is beautiful, we look at it more like church, lol. The rhythms and lyrics in our music invoke such beautiful emotions, everyone just let’s go and embraces all the good vibes. We become one rhythm, one beat and being in that united trance is a magical feeling! It’s hard to explain, you must come to the South of Africa and feel and experience music on a whole other level, we are vibes!

WWD: Your music taste isn’t limited to the music you produce and sing on, often citing techno as an inspiration – what are you currently listening to and are there any artists that have recently been inspiring you?

I feel like I live in a live jukebox, lol. I’m always around music, like always! As I go to grooves and listen to music in the House spaces and mostly visit different studios and get to hear and feel some of the most beautiful music one has ever heard/felt. I’m loving where Afrotech is going, Nana Atta, Vanco, Maline, Brandon Praise, Miči, Suffocate SA, Drega, BlacQRhythm, Pixie L, DJ Thakzin are making some insane stuff. Other than that, I’m super inspired by our, folk instruments/music, our spirituality, our gospel music any other music that makes me feel something amazing, I’m inspired.

WWD: It’s great to see more and more talented women vocalists in music claiming their rightful place as producers on records, do you feel like the stereotype put on vocalists is finally disappearing?

I really feel it was silly to disregard vocalists in the first place. A vocal is an instrument and plays a very vital part in a track, just as a simple shaker can add some powerful sauce, so does a vocalist. Vocals must stop being looked at as a favor or hobby lol, I mean vocals are very much part of a song so yes, women are producers in that light and it’s time we have more ladies producing the actual instruments not just limited to vocals. We are capable of so much more, we have been led and inspired by so many Kings and we would love to sit beside them as Kings of music too, not Queens lol, music is not sexist.