iPhupho L'ka Biko- uNomkhubulwane

iPhupho L'ka Biko is back in Johannesburg with uNomkhubulwane after their Cape Town tour. 

The 12-piece band has organized a special concert alongside DJs and other acts at Mangrove, Johannesburg.

iPhupho you L'ka Biko is a Johannesburg-based Pan Africanist band. The collective was formed in 2015 by bassist and composer Nhlanhla Ngqaqu. The members of the band met in Braamfontein, where they frequently interacted through school ensembles, jam sessions, and circular live music venues. The band although founded years earlier is heavily influenced by the Fees Must Fall movement with songs like Umhlaba wethu, a song that morphs, blending original ideas with references to historic and popular melodies. 

The Xhosa word 'iPhupho' alludes to God as the provider and fulfiller of dreams, while 'Biko' refers to the noble Bantu Biko, who was influenced by the great Africanist Mangaliso Sobukwe, the fathers of Black Consciousness and Pan-Afrikanism in South Africa. Through music, iPhupho L'ka Biko aims to educate and spiritually awaken the public. 

The band explores themes such as religion, tradition, origins, displacement, and race. 

In collaboration with Brownswood Recordings, iPhupho L’ka Bikoin 2021 released a single which is part of a compilation co-produced by Thandi Ntuli and Siyabonga Mthembu (Hymnself), the song ‘Abaphezulu’features Hymnself and Kinsmen. iPhupho L’ka also released their much anticipated debut single ‘uThixo uKhona’ in 2020. 

The band is currently in studio recording their EP for 2022 that will be followed by an album later in the year.