Telling the stories of the people through music: Jabulile Majola on debut EP 'Isitifiketi'

Jabulile Majola joins CapeTalk's Sara-Jayne Makwala King for an in-depth interview.

Singer-songwriter Jabulile (Jabulani) Majola is passionate about telling stories through music, and bringing it to the people.

Majola, who describes himself as an afro-folk artist, has just released his first EP titled Isitifiketi, which translates from the isiZulu to 'certificate' in English.

The musician shifted to folk after exploring an interest in rap when he was younger.

'I rapped because there was such a hope in how people spoke about reality as it is', he's said.

Majola grew up in a Christian children's home in Greytown, KwaZulu-Natal, after his mother disappeared three days after his birth.

Christian music and folk tales were influences during those years, and still inform the music he produces today.

"I write music telling stories of how it was growing up, and the different things that shaped the way in which I think and imagine. I believe that's very important when you see how we, maybe as African people, grew up on folk tales and how later on in our lives they form the way in which we interact with environments we find ourselves in. That's what the EP focuses on."

Jabulile Majola, Singer-songwriter

Majola says he wrote mainly in English until about three years ago, when he shifted towards writing in isiZulu.

While he describes English as a beautiful language, he finds his home language more fluid to express himself in.

"I noticed when I went back to isiZulu that it's not necessarily something that you have to write down. It's like something that you have to feel your way through."

Jabulile Majola, Singer-songwriter

Majola's love for folk music is grounded in his feeling that 'it's not just a sound, but music for the community'.

"The stories I'm telling are stories that impact the community whether it's village life, township life, society in general... The EP is in a way an introduction to who I am, but it also touches very much on identity and what makes me who I am."

Jabulile Majola, Singer-songwriter

"I make this music for the person on the street; it's for everybody. And I take the music to the people (with live performances). I think that's the equaliser - you can be rich or poor; you still need hope."

Jabulile Majola, Singer-songwriter

Scroll up to the audio player to enjoy this wide-ranging interview, and stream 'Isitifiketi' on Apple Music