The music of Malawi has historically been influenced by its triple cultural heritage of British, African, and American music. Malawians, known for their history as travellers and migrant workers, have contributed to the spread of their music across the African continent, blending it with various musical forms. A significant factor in this musical amalgamation was World War II, during which soldiers transported music to distant lands and brought it back, leading to the popularity of guitar and banjo duos as dance bands by the war's end. Both instruments were imported. Additionally, Malawians working in mines in South Africa and Mozambique influenced the fusion of music styles, giving rise to genres such as Kwela.
Joseph Anthony Budden II is an American broadcaster and rapper. He first gained recognition in the latter occupation with his 2003 single "Pump It Up", which peaked within the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100 and preceded the release of his eponymous debut studio album (2003). Met with critical and commercial success, the album peaked within the top ten of the Billboard 200, although it served as his only major label release for Def Jam Recordings; he thereafter released seven albums independently to continued critical praise. While doing so, he performed as a member of the hip hop supergroup Slaughterhouse, which were signed to Eminem's Shady Records in 2012; the group released two studio albums.
Trap Muzik is the second studio album by the American rapper T.I., released on August 19, 2003, by Atlantic and his newly founded record label Grand Hustle. Due to the poor sales on T.I.'s first album, I'm Serious (2001), T.I. asked for a joint venture deal with Arista Records or to be released from his contract; he was subsequently dropped from the label. In 2002, T.I. launched Grand Hustle with his longtime business partner Jason Geter and signed a new deal with Atlantic Records.
Slaughterhouse was an American hip hop supergroup consisting of rappers Joe Budden, Joell Ortiz, Crooked I and Royce da 5'9". They released their eponymous debut studio album independently in 2009, and signed to Shady Records, an imprint of Interscope Records to release it's follow up, Welcome to: Our House in 2012. The group disbanded in 2018.
Michael Wayne Atha, better known by his stage name Yelawolf, is an American rapper. Born in Gadsden, Alabama, and raised in Antioch, Tennessee, he embarked on his recording career in 2005, releasing four mixtapes to positive local reception. His fourth mixtape, Trunk Muzik (2010), earned him wider recognition and led him to sign a recording contract with Interscope Records. He re-worked the mixtape into his first major label release, Trunk Muzik 0-60 (2010).
The Real Elements is a Malawian hip-hop band that gained notoriety in the 1990s and 2000s in Malawi. The group consisted of Marvel, Plan B, Stix, and Q. The group holds a special place in the Malawian music industry because it propagated Malawian hip-hop and paved the way for the Malawian hip-hop genre at a time when they were a few hip-hop artists in Malawi. Their music was considered the cutting edge in the Malawi music scene. Critics argue that is the best urban group that has come out of Malawi. They performed in Malawi and their music was also featured on Channel O beaming Malawian hip-hop for the first time to a Pan African audience. In their UK tours they opened for UK hip-hop artists like Blak Twang and Terri Walker. It was just as their international career was taking off that the group separated. Stix decided to leave the music industry and follow religious pursuits. The group currently is pursuing personal interests.
Trunk Muzik is a mixtape by American rapper Yelawolf, released on January 1, 2010. It features ten all new songs and two remixes. It is hosted by DJ Burn One and contains production from WLPWR, Malay & KP and Kane Beatz and features guest appearances from Bun B, Rittz, Diamond, Raekwon and Juelz Santana.
Francis Kaphuka known professionally as Hyphen and formerly as Young Kay is a popular Malawian hip-hop artist that is known for fusing local Malawian folk songs with international genres. He is known for his vibrant sound and ability to mix Chichewa and English lyrics eloquently in his rhymes. This has earned him recognition as one of Malawi's best lyricists. He has been voted as Malawi’s best rapper twice Joy FM fans and in 2021 was crowned King of Malawian Hiphop by the audience of one of Malawi's biggest online platforms, Mikozi Networks. He was introduced to Malawian audiences under Rush records with the single “I’m Home” and his popularity grew to solidify his place as one of Malawi's greatest hip-hop artists. He has had subsequent hits since then. His song “zipepese” number 2 on FM 101 Power’s urban music chart. In 2010 he collaborated with Malawian born rising act Onesimus Muzik on a track titled "Beautiful" He also collaborated with Lucius Banda, Tigris, and Maskal on track "Malawi Goodlife" in 2011.
Trunk Muzik Returns is the sixth official mixtape by American rapper Yelawolf. The mixtape was released as a free digital download on March 14, 2013 on his Slumerican website and other mixtape hosting websites. It features production solely by WLPWR of SupaHotBeats, and guest appearances by Paul Wall, A$AP Rocky, Big Henry, Raekwon and Killer Mike.
Jonathan Matthew McCollum, better known by his stage name Rittz, is an American rapper. His debut album The Life and Times of Jonny Valiant was released on April 30, 2013, rising to number 8 on Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. His next two albums, Next to Nothing (2014) and Top of the Line (2016) peaked at number 3 on the same chart. His fourth album, Last Call (2017), hit number 43 on the Billboard 200. All of these were released under Tech N9ne's Strange Music label.
Grace Weber is an American R&B singer, songwriter and producer from Wauwatosa, Wisconsin. She is currently based in Los Angeles, California. Over her career, she has written for and collaborated with artists such as Chance the Rapper, Masego, Vic Mensa, Francis and the Lights, Westside Boogie and Towkio, as well as winning a Grammy Award. Weber has performed on national television shows including Showtime at the Apollo and The Oprah Winfrey Show.
Nard & B are an American record production team, composed of record producers James "Nard" Bernard Rosser Jr. and Brandon "B" Rackley, from Atlanta, Georgia. In 2007, the duo signed a deal with American recording artist T.I.'s Grand Hustle Records. In 2007, Nard & B founded TrenchWerk Entertainment, a music production company, with the intention of "uniting the best music producers in Atlanta and creating the most undeniable and unmatched production available."
Trunk Muzik III is the fifth studio album by American rapper Yelawolf, released on March 29, 2019. It is his final album under Eminem's imprint Shady Records, and was released in conjunction with Interscope Records and Yelawolf's own label Slumerican. The album marks a return to an emphasis on the southern hip hop sound that was predominant in Yelawolf's music at the start of the decade, a contrast to the country-folk and hip hop fusions of his previous two albums. While the album is titled as the third in the Trunk Muzik series, it is, technically, the fourth, following his 2009 mixtape Trunk Muzik, its subsequent 2010 reissue Trunk Muzik 0-60, and 2013's Trunk Muzik Returns.
Ntokozo Zakwe is a South African rapper born in KwaMashu, KwaZulu-Natal.
Siphelele Mnyande, known professionally as PdotO, is a South African rapper and songwriter.
Hip-hop culture in Malawi is relatively young. The genre is a marriage between local and western sounds. Prior to 1994, Malawi was living under a single party regime where censorship of media was heavily employed. Upon gaining freedom in 1994 the country began getting exposed to more western media and hip-hop which was gaining a global audience permeated its way into Malawian society.
Dan Lufani, best known as Dan Lu, and sometimes written as Dan Lufan, is a Malawian Afro-pop singer and songwriter. In 2011, he was awarded as best Afro pop artist of the year in Malawi Music Awards. In 2016, he was nominated in best R&B/Afro-pop Act along with other artists such as Theo Thomson and Kell Kay.
Aubrey Ghambi, best known as Suffix, is a Malawian gospel rapper and songwriter. In 2020, he won a UMP Award in best gospel act. In 2018, his album titled "Before I Sleep" won the category Album of the Year in UMP Awards and he was nominated as Best Hip Hop Artist as well as Best Urban Gospel. In 2016, was nominated for the same category and award.
Chifuniro Steven Magalasi, best professionally known as Eli Njuchi, is a Malawian singer and songwriter. In 2018, he won a UMP Award in Best New Act. In 2019, he won another UMP award as the best male of the year.
Lloyd Phiri is a Malawian gospel musician and praise and worship leader. He released his debut album "Sachedwa Safulumira" in 2013, containing 10 tracks which received positive reviews and established him as a rising star in the Malawian gospel music scene. He has since released several successful albums and singles, including "Mundikondane", "Mwalaika", and "Ndilibe ".
