SA: DBN Gogo named Spotify EQUAL Africa artist

The announcement follows the release of her seven-track EP Click Bait featuring Yumbs, Atmos Blaq, Triple X Da Ghost and Sfarzo Rtee, among others.

DBN Gogo’s 2024 calendar on Spotify got more exciting when first she was announced as part of artists to watch in 2024 alongside Uncle Waffles, HoneyLuv, and others. She is the only artist in Africa so far to hold the EQUAL Africa ambassadorship twice, a testament to her blossoming career. 

Spotify has added more than 6 900 women artists to EQUAL playlists and supported over 1 000 ambassadors in their home countries including South Africa. This support has ranged from editorial to partnerships and marketing.

“Being a part of the EQUAL Africa programme is something I am truly grateful for,” DBN Gogo said. “Being recognised and celebrated as one of the many women pioneering in SA music is an honour. The industry being male-dominated just exists as a fact in my world, not a barrier to entry. I have set my own standard.”

Spotify artist and label partnerships manager for East Africa Monica Kemoli-Savanne said: “How we show up on the continent for women and how we tell their stories is a priority for us, and artists such as DBN Gogo are presenting positive narratives locally and to the world through EQUAL Africa.”

Speaking to Spotify, DBN Gogo said most fans were not aware that she could sing. “I have actually sung on a few songs, some of which were my own. I realised pretty early in my life that music would be a big part of it. Maybe not DJing exactly, but it just came naturally to me. I love being in a position to be able to express myself through music.”

She credited local artists including Boom Shaka, Thebe, Jimmy Dludlu and Malaika for inspiring her career.

“The influence of kwaito and Afropop is quite heavy in the present dance and amapiano genre. My style is quite diverse, I wouldn’t say it’s one thing. A mixture of amapiano, three-step with gqom as well. I like to experiment.”

EQUAL artists received 1.3 billion editorial streams within their first month of joining the programme. In total, the EQUAL hub has generated over 31 billion editorial streams across 1 billion listening hours. In 2023 alone, more than 14.8 million artist discoveries were made through EQUAL playlists, and EQUAL artists received over 11 800 total editorial playlist adds.

Born Mandisa Radebe in Durban, DBN Gogo’s upbringing is testament to the DJ and producer being a sponge of rich culture that reflects in her eclectic sound. Growing up in Pretoria undoubtedly shaped her sound as she became a willing ambassador for the genre, taking amapiano to the world. Since the release of her debut track ‘Khuza Gogo’ in 2021, DBN Gogo has cemented her status as one of the most unique and exciting artists to come from South Africa in recent years. Click Bait, a sonic atlas that takes advantage of amapiano’s adaptability to demonstrate her versatile taste, incorporates elements of Afro-tech and old-school EDM with ease.