Hailing from Johannesburg, kwaito-house fusion group, BATUK, have launched themselves into the global market since their inception in 2015, playing to over 100 000 people in over 15 countries and the new year promises to bring more of the same.
GLAMOUR recently caught up with group members Mantiega and Spoek, to chat about the music industry, their influences, and where they see themselves in three years.
How was the group formed?
Manteiga: Spoek watched a play of mine and was captured by my performance, he then approached me and asked me to join him in studio. Before we knew it, Batuk was born!
What was it like it in the early stages of the group? Was there ever a time when you felt like giving up?
Manteiga: We have been blessed with a spirit of great energy and a drive throughout this process. At no point were we despondent. We keep believing and supporting one another and make sure that our work gets the time and effort that it needs in order to be great.
Spoek: This is the early stage of the group lol! We’ve only been going for two years and have already achieved really great stuff and most importantly have had a great time doing it. Onward and upwards! For a group to start two years ago and already have two albums done and performed in over 15 countries is massive, we just want to keep growing our audience and our craft/art.
BATUK has a very unique sound, how did you find your sound, and who are your main influences?
Manteiga: Artists are inventors. When we create we are given the freedom to mould. Batuk is a project that draws from instinct. We follow our guts. Our upcoming album “Kasi Royalty”, which drops in May, is largely influenced by the sounds we heard growing up in Johannesburg. With kwaito, jazz, deep house, groovy house and rnb influences, you’ll feel pretty nostalgic listening to it.
Spoek: We both really love house music of various styles…I come from a hip-hop background, while Carla grew up with house music as her top choice. So we blend influences to create something fresh. As a producer I’m influenced by a lot of people like Culoe, Aero, Cleo, Coffee, Da Capo, Kent.
You’ve spent some time in Europe…what was that experience like? How do European audiences differ from the South African market?
Spoek: Audiences there don’t need to know all the songs in order to have a huge amount of fun. I think SA audience can be quite particular about what they do and don’t like….we’ve played quite a lot of festivals in Europe where people have no clue who we are before we get on and by the end of the show, it’s 30 000 sweaty, happy party people. I enjoy that carefree, open minded vibe.
Manteiga: Europe is beautiful and wonderful to explore. The people love our music and its really encouriging to know that despite language, origin or culture, they are open to so many different sounds and energies. There is obviously nothing like home sweet home, but our market is very very specific and picky about what they want and like or completely ignore.
Where do you see BATUK in the next two or three years?
Spoek: More great music, more film work, more great art. In two years we would have released two more albums, and people will have a much better sense of who we are. We get better everyday with our songwriting so I’m really excited about what we’ll be doing in two years. I guess we would have travelled to 50 countries in two years.
Manteiga: World wide, everywhere.
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