15 Oct 2019

 Kwasa Kwasa, music and dance made popular by flamboyant Democratic Republic of Congo artiste, Kanda Bongo man, is what Gofaone Mfetane, popularly known as Gofa in local music circles, grew up listening to.

It was not by choice as he simply found himself surrounded by people who loved the music  as well as the colourful and shiny clothes worn by Kwasa Kwasa artistes.

However, the 28-year-old chose to become a Kwasa Kwasa artist by his own volition, and admits that it is not a rose lined journey as challenges are aplenty along the way.

“You don’t just record your song today and become famous the next day,” he said in an interview.

Having started his music career at 17 years, Gofa has seen it all and is realistic about his chances of making it big in the industry as his Congolese idol.

Currently working on an eight-track Kwasa Kwasa album with a mysterious artist from the DRC, Gofa said his love for the music genre would never die.

“The release date of my album as well as the featured artist would be a surprise to my followers as I’m still spicing it up,” he said, urging his fans to be patient, as he wants to dish out only the best.

He recorded his first Kwasa Kwasa album while a Form 2 pupil, but could not juggle schoolwork and music, which forced him to  abandon the album production before it was released.

In 2017, Gofa decided to make a come back and joined the Zet Band as an atalaku.

In the role, he was responsible for spicing up songs by adding some humorous lyrics.

While still with the band, they released a single titled Lokolo, which was well received and helped him gain some popularity.

He then took a gap year from music after the release of the song.

He made another come back this year  with two new singles. He released Batswana ka Letheka in March.

“I worked with Yannick Disho and Basco Fresh on this song. It was mixed and mastered at KK Music Production by Kudzi Kumakili.

It was released with a bonus track titled O Motsadi Wame, which he dedicated to all mothers.

Gofa went on to release the second single titled Bakgatla ba Mochudi in August.

“I dedicated Bakgatla ba Mochudi to Bakgatla thanking them for the support that I received from them. The song was mixed, balanced and mastered at Zolasko Music Lab by Zolasko,” he said.

The songs, earned him more and more recognition from music lovers, hence paving way for his dream of becoming one of the best Kwasa Kwasa artiste.

His wish is to grow more in music so that he could one day be able to go international and collaborate with other international artists.

He bravely went on to explain that he intends to reach his destiny regardless of challenges that he might come across.

Regarding challenges, Gofa  explained that piracy was one of the challenges that he, and other artistes face.  He advised his fellow musicians to not be discouraged by the hiccup as live performances helped a lot.

He also advised against imitating others in order to gain fame, as it is could backfire.

He said he looked up to the likes of Oscar Chakabuya and Franco Lesokwane, but did not imitate them as he planned on working hard to and to be original to reach his goal just like the great Kanda Bongo Man. ENDS