Any hip-hopper will tell you that an exceptional track comes out of the magic that happens between an MC and a beat.
The beat in hip-hop is as important as flavour is to a meal. Therefore, a producer who produces brilliant beats is king. And one such king is Inyambo Imenda, aka Nyambz. He was named the African producer of the year at the African Hip-Hop Indaba in 2003.
He's worked with Proverb, Prokid, Tumi and with The Volume, Teargas, Optical Illusion, Zubz and Pebbles, to name a few.
But he and his producer partner Mizi have released an album, Left Field - a fusion of jazz and hip-hop - and they plan to release it in Europe, Africa and the US.
"We did this album because we needed to take a break from the stuff we were doing for other people. It is about what we like," Nyambz said.
He continues: "We don't want to limit this album to selling just a few thousand copies. The reality is that hip-hop is not selling in SA and that is due to poor marketing."
But selling overseas is not a first for Nyambz. He has sold his beats to hip-hoppers such as Main Flow (Cincinnati), Joint Custody (Arizona), The Combaticons (Boston), Soul Cannibal (UK) and The Tribesmen (Canada).
"We're planning to do more international stuff. There are possible deals in Germany," he said.
Nyambz, based in Pretoria, has been instrumental in shaping the sound of that area's hip-hop scene . But these are his views on hip-hop in SA. "It is struggling. It is stale. It seems people don't know what they're doing, they're just under pressure to release. People should not be scared to try new things."
Talking about that, some producers tend to be so monotonous in their productions that one can recognise their beat without being told who it belongs to. "I try to sound different on everything I do," Nyambz said.
He says he is influenced by funk, jazz and hip-hop from the '90s till about 1997. "I own thousands of records and I think that gives me a better understanding of the music. I have always enjoyed the instrumental part of tracks. I sample now and then, because music from back in the day had much more texture. Now it is thin."
He knows his music and one would think he studied it or did a bit of sound engineering. "I didn't study music or sound. If I had studied, it would've killed my creativity. Now it would help polish my skills."
He says he hasn't sold a beat since July last year. "I'm still not sure if this is what I wanna do."
Well, that he agreed to this interview means he still considers himself a producer. Once a music maker, always so. It'd be a pity if he stopped. SA hip-hop needs him.
