NEW SINGLE - NEVER FALL

"I'll never fall stay firm on the top of this microphone and make records like the mic was on"

Wassup fam! We're back with another blazing hot single! It's called Never Fall and it's gonna be hitting more radio stations in the next week! It's produced by Kay Master and Ngane, and you can stream it for yourself in the meantime HERE.

Please share this with friends. Make the above picture your profile picture on facebook and twitter! We're one step closer to witnessing the release of 20 the album! Don't forget to share this blog with your friends so you can ALL stay up to date!

Follow me on twitter @Marazamc and join the Maraza facebook page.

Lot's of love. Remember, #NeverFall

20!

ANOTHER UPDATE

Sanibonani. It's been a long minute since I blogged. But we been busy re-igniting the flame of 20 the album. And, as hard as this might be to believe, we've finally done it. Pretty soon the album will be available for Digital download and, soon after that, you will be able to hold a copy! #iSupportLocal

Just to show you how serious we are at MUSE Entertainment, we've included an exclusive sneak peak into some of the illustrations that will be on the album cover so THERE IS NO TURNING BACK NOW. YES, this is an actual drawing done by a human being. The wonderful folks at HERE WE GO really came through on this one. The whole cover is "hand written", I chose this because I feel this album will go a long way into "writing" history, and I wanted to reflect that.

Please remember to follow me on twitter @marazamc and join the FB PAGE MarazA . Daily updates are available on both platforms and at least 2 blogs a week from this one. Remember to also catch me on #Headrush , every Saturday at 10:00 am CAT on @ChannelOtv . The show is getting better each week!!!

Till next time. Thank you all for the support!

[.:*20*:.]

APRIL FOOL TANK *NO JOKES*

OK SO HERE WE GO!
HERE COMES A STRING OF MONTHLY EVENTS, AROUND THE COUNTRY, WHERE LIVE-ENTERTAINMENT COMES FIRST, AND THE COVER-CHARGE COMES FIFTH. WELCOME TO STAR STUDDED NYTS . . .

Yep! We're gonna be bringing you awesome live-performers. I'm talking artists who get on stage and focus their minds on one thing: ENTERTAINING YOU!

YESSES! We'll be doing best! I'm talking lights, camera, SMASHING! And we start off with
[[[[[[[[[[APRIL FOOL TANK *NO JOKES*]]]]]]]]]]].
1st of April 2011, at Coconut Villa in Rosettenville [Cnr Bouquet and Geranium Str. Opposite Chicken Lickin'], STAR STUDDED brings your a buffet of some of the best live entertainers in the country:

MarazA
iFani
F-Eezy
Kay-E
Oz
Ma-Ar Chronicles
Blak Suga

It's only going to cost R40 at the door, and it's free for ladies before 10pm. There will be specials on certain liquor brands, so, come fill up your tank! There will also be Dj's dropping hit after hit of the best Hip Hop, House and Kwaito jams.
THIS IS NOT AN APRIL FOOL'S JOKE. But if you miss it, the joke is on YOU!

Follow @StarStuddedNyts and @Marazamc on twitter for more information.

#Team20

THEE UPDATE

Whoop Whoooop!
Yep, it's been a minute and 2 seconds, but the blog is still alive and spillin' the spit!
Here's an update of what went down and what will still go down in the life of the RAZ!:

PAST:
1. Shelela Remix ft. Clu (AKA's Do it Do it; SKWATTA's Hey Hey), Tuks (Senganga), Ntukza (Teargas, Cashtime) was recorded and released to stations and has been getting major love. We're distributing it to more stations.

2. I recorded a Shizznizz performance AND a Jam Alley performance that features Clu, Tuks and Ntukza all on one stage for the first time. Look out for all of these on E-TV and SABC 1 respectively, SOONER than you can say 20!

3. 2 weeks ago myself, Pro, Zuluboy, Red Button, Morale , Sean Pages and Tee Pee played terrorist and left Durban city on FIRE after a hectic Joe Cool's performance. Shout out to SAB.

4. This week, we chuffed up the Hip Hop Powernights with that crazy dude C-Live. This one was epic!

STILL TO COME:
1. Tomorrow, I hit Durban again! This time, with a bigger bomb! CLUB PLUSH WILL BURN TO THE GROUND. And you know Durban clubs don't close, so, Zakwe, Oz, Snazzy, Vumar, ABBU, Dr. Sguddy, DJ Mdu and MarazA will party till the sun waves a white flag!

2. We will be shooting the music video for the shelela remix soon!

3. I shot an episode of Headrush with Tuks, and THAT'S gonna be interesting. So far, it's my best one yet.

4. Tomorrow night I'm on Ukhozi from 19:30. Do best and tune in. Live on-air performance of Shelela.

SO...
There is so much going on that I can't reveal yet. But keep your eyes peeled. The rize is everywhere now and harder to ignore. WATCH IT!

PS: Check out my online interview with justcurious.co.za

TWENTY!

BEHIND THE SCENES - SHELELA MUSIC VIDEO SHOOT

EPIC TIMES ARE AHEAD. It's one thing to have people tell you that you've grown as an artist, and quite another to look back at your years in the industry and see your growth for yourself. 5 months after debuting the "ONE FOOT IN THE GAME" music video, MUSE Entertainment have teamed up with GREEN FILMS once again, to shoot the music video for my latest single: SHELELA ft. Dezza, which is boung to elevate the growth!

I need to tell you first of all that, I am NOT interested in the TYPICAL Hip Hop music video with naked chicks and champagne. Not on this album. So to have a production team like GREEN FILMS, who share the same vision and realize that a music video must be able to tell you a story even when the sound is on mute is quite a blessing. We spent weeks on the concept and the treatment of the video, and it all culminated in a very long but exciting shoot on Sunday the 21st of November. We were up at 05:00 am and getting ready for something EPIC. Lehlabile Mashego, our make-up artist for the day, came all the way from the Vaal to help us out. Thanx a milli to Nini for organizing this. We were quite honored to have Vie of fashion store "TWENTY-TWO BOUTIQUE" dress us for the video! YOH! This lady knows her stuff. And how can I forget Zama and Zonke, the pretty fashionistaz with the sexy accents (not to mention a great eye for photography). These 3 "FASHION POPOs" made sure we didn't break any fashion laws.

It's always a pleasure shooting on the Cannon 5D, especially when the crew knows what they're doing with it. What we have here is a crisp, clean, HD music video which is going to exceed the standard set by ONE FOOT IN THE GAME. A special shout out goes to JURY MUSIC for all their help. Lerato Letsoalo, AMO PR, Coco, YAW BANNERMAN, Shelley Christians, Margarita Naydenova and the rest of the GREEN FILMS crew for everything they put into making Dezza and I look good on TV. We really appreciate that.

For a sexy teaser of what went on behind the scenes, check out more pictures here.

Lot's of love! See you in Polokwane this Saturday!

20!

EMERGENCY ENTRANCE MIXTAPE : PART 1

OH YEAH! IT'S FINALLY HERE! Like I said! 1pm. November 19 (a day before the 20th, I might add). FRESH, NEVER-HEARD-BEFORE MUSIC. FREE!!!. EMERGENCY ENTRANCE MIXTAPE : PART 1. Who is on it? Check out the tracklist below:

1. EMERGENCY EXIT ft. S-Lee, M-Scarz [Produced by MarazA]
2. GOSSIP [A MarazA Remix. Produced by StreetRunner]
3. NAMES IN STARS ft. Money Mosh [Produced by Da Kompozitioner]
4. LIGHT UP [A MarazA Remix. Produced by 40 and HitMason]
5. SKYWALKER ft. iFani [Produced by MarazA]
6. 2011 SWAGGA [Produced by MarazA]
7. GONE CRAZY ft. M-Scarz, S-Lee, Bobzin Dash [A MarazA Remix. Produced by Don Cannon]
8. NANA [Produced by MarazA]
9. WINGS ft. Money Mosh [Produced by MarazA]

Shout out to MZI for recordin', mixin' and mastering SKYWALKER. And of course to Hhay' Mani, iFani, for the feature. We made magic! PATOU BISSAY and FORTUNE of CAMASA studios where most of the tape was recorded, mixed and mastered. A special shout out to ma brotha from down under: DA KOMPOZITIONER for that sick beat on Names In Stars, featuring the BADDEST CHICK IN SA HIP HOP RIGHT NOW: MONEY MOSH! This tape also features two of my favorite nu kids in rap: M-Scarz and the soulful vocalist rapper: S-Lee. He reminds me of Kay Soul (you ain't heard jack if you ain't heard Soul rap). Part two of this mixtape series will feature more of my favorite new acts like BEYOND MUSIC and BLAK SUGAR (Let's blow you up kid!).

Special shouts to ma home: MUSE Entertainment for the creative freedom I have. OWN YOUR MASTERS you rappers. Also, shout out to AMO PR and MANAGEMENT. I actually can't wait for y'all to hear this! Leave a comment, let me know what your favorite jam is and why. Fav lines. Fav beats. Fav fav! SHOUT OUT TO HEADRUSH! So, the link will be available at the top of this blog on the left corner. If you can't find that, then download the mixtape here.

We, MUSE ENTERTAINMENT, grant you the right to copy as much of this as you can to your friends all over the world. Don't sell it! It's free to download. We're counting down to the launch of 20 THE ALBUM. IT'S ABOUT TO GET STOOPID!

WATCH DA RIZE!!!

VANDALISING THE BANK

Ma people! It seems I'm destined to celebrate other people's birthday parties for the remainder of this year. And, by so doing, RIZE higher! It's only been two weeks since we did major damage at THE BANK for K.O's birthday party, but we were back VANDAL-eyes-ing the poor little rich spot for Trevor Madondo's do.

I was quite honored to be given the platform to showcase my stuff at an event that was STRICTLY DJs. Being the ONLY live performer of the night either meant I was going to be crowned king by the time the night is over, or get booed of the stage by a mob of angry people who would rather dance than watch some rapper sweat. I was nervous, and thirsty. Do you know how much a bottle of Jack costs over there? They don't call it THE BANK for nothing. Better see your financial adviser before going in fellaz. Speaking of adviser, my ever so gorgeous stylist @NellyLeo wasn't around to smoothen the edges around my look. So, I asked myself, "what would Nelly want me to wear?". I ended up putting together a colour co-ord she would be proud off, but missed the dress-code by a long shot. I was the only dude I saw wearin' some hot sneaks. Which ain't so bad as far as non-conforming goes.

I guess I've postponed the stage long enough. I mean, did I get booed off the stage? Well, I was scheduled to go on at 00:15 am. But it went to 00:50 am (We are still Bantus you know). The audience was packed to capacity, vibing to their favorite house jams. A couple of handshakes later and my manager, a friend, and I were outside McDonald's getting an early morning feast before bed. You can see a few pics of me on and off stage here. Much love to the Vandals @DjSbuOnline and @TrevorMadondo for letting a brother shine. Now, let me get back to polishing this new crown.

Drop me a comment. Vote. Socialise.

Lot's of love.

MarazA.

20.

20 THE ALBUM - TRACK PROFILES (THE BRIGADE)

Alright, the countdown has re-erupted. We are officially weeks away from releasing the album nationally. With that, it's time to give y'all a sneak peak at the craftsmanship that went into making the album. First track for us to dissect is the highly talked about, THE BRIGADE Ft. ProVerb, KoldProduk, Zakwe and Zubz.

This track came about quite curiously. It was mostly a result of me bumping into rappers I liked and respected, and realized that the respect was mutual. I knew however that I wanted this to be epic, so I opted for nothing less than the BEST beat I could find. My old time friend, and one of my favorite producers, Kay Master, provided the perfect canvas for lyrical painting. The first cat to agree to get on the Joint was Proverb. I've been a great fan of this giant since THE BOOK OF PROVERB, and he realised potential in me after Jam Alley Versus. It also helped that dude is just an all-round nice guy! With lines like "Forget a 16, drop 20 there ought'ta be some change/ my thoughts will be deranged coz I fought to be on stage/ so take it from me, go after the fortune leave the fame", the bar had been set pretty high. I then hooked up with Moki from KoldProduk at the MTN HYPE AWARDS Nominees Party, and dude was more than happy to trade digits! After hearing him spit "Don't speak about beef we got mad cow disease and best believe there ain't no antidote" on the track, I knew we had created a monster! I went to Durbs and got my boy Zakwe to drop a hot 8 barz as well. The line "And if you wanna be my fan, woza ng'kwenz' uphephe la" set the right standard for the legendary golden mic holder to start on. Zubz loves starting it on a high note.

Closing off this track was difficult. I mean, how do you even begin after such a lyrical assault from industry heavy wights like Zubz and Pro, kasi lingo crunchers like Zakwe and the urban crossover specialists, KoldProduk? What do you do? You go in with that braveheart mentality. Sharper than the tip of Mel Gibson's sword and more demented than it's owner. So that's the joint! Track 10 off of 20 the album. And what did Zubz and I spit? Well, the album will be in stores in very few weeks, as I'm sure you're dying to find out!


WATCH DA RIZE!


20!

KO's BIRTHDAY PARTY PERFORMANCE

It was a hot night! Someone got older. Someone saw me perform for the first time. Someone undoubtedly had no recallection the morning after. Me? I just did bestest!

My boy K.O from Teargas . . . actually, I'm lying! He isn't my "boy"! He's just a cool cat and we happen to know each other. We haven't hung out enough to refer to each other as "boy" and attach ownership before it. But isn't it irritating how people throw that term around? Back to THE BANK. Someone better fix it because myself, Teargas, Pro-Kid, Red Button, Shluda Da Guru, Soosh, Romz Deluxe and L-Tido BROKE IT when K.O celebrated his birthday! It was a great night that got off to a slow start, but once it got packed, everyone was glad they were there early.

My set was short-lived, but the memories permanent. I got the show off to a great start (Or so I was told) and Pro-Kid, L-Tido and Teargas kept the lava smoldering for the rest of the evening. Everybody seems to know One Foot In The Game now. So, it wasn't hard. But look out for the new single "Shelela". We will be shooting a video for it soonest. For more pics from the Birthday Party, click here. You'll notice I had on my DC Base Hi-Tops which I've been raving about ( SUPRA HUMAN). I love these shoes, but at 3 am in the morning when I got home, even they had to have less feet in them. Slept like a baby on Chloroform.

Once again big up to my . . . uhm . . . fellow rapper . . . and . . . ALL ROUND GOOD GUY (yeah, that's very true) K.O for seeing another successful year. Y'all cat's is here to stay!
So am I!

MaraZA

FREESTYLE FILEZ - JHB CBD

I've been getting a few challenges for a battle (yeah, really). From sober people. Which is weird. The thing with battles, which is the same with everything that's about immediate satisfaction, is that they're more enjoyable when they're a gas station on your journey towards a bigger destination. And I've passed that gas station ages ago! Why should I walk backwards . . .

I've uploaded a freestyle I did last night (recorded by Mason at the Colosseum i JHB) coz that's something I still do, and still understand it's importance towards the growth of an artist. What is it? Well, you get to practice. More than anything, practice is important. Keeping your brain on it's musical toes. It's also very entertaining for the consumers of your music, and does not seek to specifically degrade another artist. Battles aren't bad. Making battles your ultimate destination IS. There is so much more to be achieved from making great timeless music as opposed to being involved in one forgettable street battle. Besides, if people like us, who have been in it for a while, start hogging the spot in the battle scene, what are the upcoming kids gonna do to sharpen their skillz?! And who are they going to look up to and aspire to be, if their idols are in the same cipher as them? Battles may give you street cred, but they don't make you a great artist. You have to leave the cipher to find out what it means to be a good musician.


So peep the freestyle above and enjoy the genuine mistakes and off-the-top lyrics. The album will be available for purchase in a few weeks. Support local music. I will upload the lyrics, as soon as I've figured them out, on my youtube channel. Follow me on twitter and facebook to see what others are saying about this freestyle. Leave a comment here as well. Click here for more of my music.

20!

IF AGE MATTERS, HE IS 12 YEARS AHEAD

I try and keep my blogs to 1 picture/video per post, but sometimes a point needs to be made. If you're a rapper/musician, look at yourself now . . . then look at where you were exactly 2 years ago. Any difference? If there isn't, you really need to read this . . .

On Thursday the 13th of November 2008, US mega star (he was a mega star then, at least) THE GAME put his beef with 50 Cent on hold to come to South Africa to bless the masses and drink unnecessary amounts of Vodka on stage (It does not matter that it may have been water, it matters that he wanted us to think it was Vodka). The Standard Bank Arena was packed! Real Gobhoza was there, E-TV's Showbizz report was there . . . hell even Daily Sun was there - pause for Daily Sun headline:
"THE GAME : CURSED BY EVIL MICROPHONE"
But what people ended up speaking about in the weeks after the event was not The Game taking his shirt off, it was not the over-sized white T-shirts and denim shorts on stage: it was about a 10 year-old boy who went on stage and took copious amounts of shine from The Game, literally. I'm talking chains and all!

Picture No. 2 above shows Mbekezeli, now known as Gamebuoy, on the shoulders of his idol at the concert two years ago. A lot of talk followed; was he just a copy? Is he a phony marketing scheme by the show's organizers? Will he ever release? Is he any good? I laugh. Picture No. 1 shows Gamebuoy as he is today. A fully fledged artist. A young beast that many will make the mistake of undermining. A hustler. A rapper, well-worth listening to. In two years, this kid has gone from bored haters' tea-time subject to THE FACE OF FUBU SOUTH AFRICA, and his album isn't even out yet! Music industry online recently did an article on him where I was mentioned as a contributor to the lyrics of his upcoming album. I'm really happy about this but let me tell you, Gamebuoy MADE the song! This young dude has a delivery so commanding, so immaculate, so perfect that I felt ashamed. Why? Coz I knew that, although I may have wrote the song, I could have NEVER made it sound that good. What we have here is an artist. This kid is dedicated to his craft. I've hung out with him a couple times, and all he wanted to do was rap! In an age where most of us rappers wanna see money in our accounts before picking up the mic, Gamebuoy is a breath of fresh air.

So let this be a lesson to y'all. Let it be known that if you become stagnant, young diamonds that look up to you will quickly outshine you! I'm very happy to be associated with this dude. Very happy that his album is coming out AFTER mine. Very inspired by him. Very happy that South African Hip Hop has gone this far. He may be 12 years old, but he is 12 years ahead of the competition! Don't sleep on him. FUBU, Moshito and the National tour are just the beginning. Shout out to Tsotsi Taal Productions for looking after my young new friend.

20
Youtube
Twitter
Music

ONE HIGHLY-ROTATED FOOT IN THE GAME

I've been looking back at the intense work we put in to shoot my first music video for the MarazA and Bobzin Dash smash hit single: "One Foot In The Game Ft. Kay Soul" (3rd Picture above). We couldn't have possibly anticipated that GREEN FILMS' master cinematography, direction and editing would give birth to such a successful video.

We're already sitting on 1606 views on youtube. The bulk of our success, however, is seen on ChannelO and MTV Base (to whom we're really grateful), where the video is seen EVERYDAY by fans and haters alike. It's really quite humbling. The coat is still highly debated, with split opinions on whether it's a Nay or Yay, but talk is talk and talk is good! I think what also makes the video so powerful, apart from the fact that it's a kickass song and the quality is one of the best we've seen withing these borders, is the muscle we packed in the star-studded cameos. Proverb (2nd Pic), KoldProduk and FratPack (1st Pic) all lent their iconic images to helping me realize a personal dream. That's something worthy of respects in my book! The dancers were also incredibly nanaz! Delta killed it y'all! She went on to win Masters of Rhythm in the solo females category, but that's no surprise.

The support has been phenomenal and many people are demanding that we get nominated for awards for this video. I won't argue with that! To see what the hype is about, peep the video on youtube here. Also tune in to channel 320 and 321 on DSTV. You can keep up with Proverb on his website and follow Fratpack on twitter.

Don't forget to check me out on twitter and facebook, and download some of my music here.

20!

SUPRA-HUMAN

Checking bank balance . . .
Balance insufficient.
Reaching into that nasty impulse to buy things we can't afford . . .
IMPULSE ABUNDANT!
I"M GETTING THESE!

GPY! Ekse, these are hot, right? It's the Supra Society (Black/Blue Suede), released for the autumn season up north in the US. Now, you may wonder what a sneaker is doing on a Hip Hop artist's blog? Go to youtube and search 'RUN DMC MY ADIDAS' and get your learn on. Also, this blog is really about EVERYTHING that inspires me to make the music I do. From cars to cash, girls to gadgets and, most importantly, fellow artists, friends and the guy on the street.

These sneakers inspire me to achieve more . . . so I can afford more of them. I love the merger between polish leather and suede, in that new-age skytop we have come to love Supra for. This brand is kicking leather butt y'all! The way the blue and black meet and greet each other, it's the perfect combination of kool-kid kolour, and Jay-Z approved grown-man black! I would still rock these with a fresh pair of well fitted skinnies though, IN FRONT OF JAY-Z . . . and Beyonce. I recently bought a pair of DC Base Sneakers, part of the LIFE COLLECTION, at the premier sneaker event of the year: STR.CRD KICKING IT WITH SPORTSCENE in Cape Town and, I must say, I hate myself for ignoring the Supra stand.

Let's just hope that my international connect will be at the ready to get me these before they hit S.A, so I can rock them on the set of my upcoming music video for the new single: SHELELA ft. Dezza. We'll be going to the printers next week. Get them Krugers ready. The music is coming!

Twitter: @Marazamc
Facebook : MarazA Watchda Rize
http://www.reverbnation.com/maraza