The Muffinz is one of South Africa’s leading musical acts, with melodic offerings deeply rooted in the African heritage. With two albums under the belt and a third one coming soon, we chat to band member Sifiso Buthelezi about their journey.
By: Fundiswa Nkwanyana
1. I am popularly known as Sfiso Atomza. I am an expressive art ambassador and activist; I use art to express my thoughts and emotions. I am a singer, play the guitar and dabble in writing articles for blogs.
2. I realised the power of music when I was in university. This happened when I got a chance to go to Europe to sing with the choir. I had always known that I would be a musician, but never thought I would turn it into a career.
3. The Muffinz create afro’lectric woke music. This means we play progressive African music that preserves African ideals and teachings in an entertaining and informative way. Our music covers various topics as there is a lot of social commentary about being young men navigating existence through post-colonial South Africa. It aims to show the world the pieces of an authentic, African experience through song amid globalisation and the threat of Africans losing their own cultures in favour of Western-inspired practices and ways of life.
4. We are currently working on our third album. Our debut album titled Have You Heard is a heartfelt album that comprises of old songs that we compiled from our song books. Our second album Do What You Love was inspired by us abandoning everything to pursue a music career. Our third album will have light-hearted music with a few surprises.
5. I have a side passion project. I work with a visual arts publication called Conté Magazine. It aims to create a platform for African painters, photographers, writers and illustrators to share their work. We print tri-annually, and have an online platform at contemag.com
