Describing his new album "Novacane" as an anesthetic to "numb" the pain of the world, his debut album delivers more than just a fancy title but a collection of great sounds and influences from his life.
Drealnova, has such an unassuming musical character. He barely gives it away that his debut album is packed with the musical stuff of legends. No one can pick, from first listen, that it is his first body of work (and I most certainly did not). The tones, melodies, vocal abilities and arrangements on "Novacane" are not only pleasurable to the ear but are reminiscent of all my nineties music I grew up to and which inspired him but fused with today's sound. That edgy and brave sound we all love to "close our eyes" and drift to.
Born in a family that organises for a band at every other gathering, it was inevitable that he would take another path different from that of music. His sister Cindy Munyavi, Clive "Mono" Mukundu and his family and a large part of his family are musicians and form the base at which his career began.
He was literally raised on drumsticks,keys, the microphone and playback for desert.
Born Thabani Vuyisile Moyake, Dreal experimented with music at a tender age with a group called "The Six Hustlers" before being signed by Extol and singing with the Award winning group Zimpraise.
Making his home between Johannesburg, Capetown and Zimbabwe, the young Xosa man struggled with the pressures of life just like any man of his age living in an ever changing continent are faced with. His only refuge was and remains music in which he puts all his thoughts, challenges and experiences on.
On the album Novacane, the first song "Cleopatra" is an ode to her brother's wife who, withstanding complications during the birth of her child, reminded the world musician of the power that God placed upon a woman with child bearing.
He says, "For a man to tape into your blessing from God, He uses a woman to bring forth that blessing."
The song pays homage to women and their resilience while it references Cleopatra VII ruled ancient Egypt for almost three decades and known for her intelligence and "irresistible charm".
"I just wanted to tell all women that they are indeed Cleopatras and they should never look down upon themselves"
Drealnova worked with eight producers for his album, enabling him to experiment on the sounds that have made up his life and spoke intelligibly on matters of life and the arts.
I am beginning to think otherwise on the future of the arts in the country which I had thought was going to crumble down into none existence.
There is so much creativity and so much hope when artists are not simply producing a song for the sake of it but because they see themselves as vessels and message bearers into a society that is dying to have someone speak to it. You can hear more on the conversation I had with him here.
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