Bubblegum Club

Tag: Whyt Lyon

  • STASH CREW’s latest EP is the electronic soundtrack for a gender fluid future

    STASH CREW’s latest EP is the electronic soundtrack for a gender fluid future

    The future is gender fluid. Probably. I mean, if there is a future. With the current climate, who knows how much longer we’ll inhabit this planet for? What I do know is that more people these days are starting to open up to the idea that sexuality is a spectrum and so is gender, which bodes well for a less binary future. STASH CREW’s GENDERFLUIDZ, as you can probably tell by the title, is a jacked up electronic soundtrack for that future.

    Right off the bat, we’re greeted with a booty popping opener called Pop (Dat) which I can only describe as Smack My Bitch up in a washing machine of bass. It’s a fun opener that gives you a solid idea of what you’re in for over the next 7 songs. You’re in for is a queer as fuck retro-futuristic rap-rave jol. Think Die Antwoord, but with less cultural appropriation and more lyrics about women eating pussy.

    “The realities of living as a queer person in South Africa are brutal. We are inspired by the transformative and inclusive possibilities of queer culture and how we can counteract the challenges and violence that queer people face on a daily basis,” STASH CREW explain in their press release, “We want more queer positive, sex positive people celebrating themselves and their wants and desires – and dancing every damn day”.

    GENDERFLUIDZ will definitely get you dancing, and it truly is 2 queer kids from Jozi celebrating themselves, with touches from Umlilo, HLASKO and Schall Regall. Whyt Lyon, Phayafly have a close working relationship with Umlilo. In 2017 they toured Brazil and Germany with Umlilo as part of their ‘Queer Intergalatic Alliance’ collaborative project, and Umlilo also features on their bonus song and video for GENDERFLUIDZ, Mad as Hell.

    Photography by Corrina Mehl

  • Umlilo and Whyt Lyon – Glory Bois

    One of the most visually opulent artists working today, Umlilo has been winning ears and hearts with their bold fusion of kwaito, rap and bubblegum pop. Since their debut EP in 2013, Umlilo’s project has been exploring the tragedies and triumphs of life in a world of repressive gender politics. Their artistic comrades in the struggle is the Johannesburg electro-rap Stash Crew. Frustrated by the erasure of LGBTQ identity in mainstream culture, they combined their talents in 2016 with the “Queer Galactic Alliance” world tour, thrilling audiences with raucous live shows in Brazil and Germany. Their aim was to attack the Death Star of toxic conservatism, promoting “glitter anarchy” on the streets.

    The performance collaboration has extended into the new DL Boi a song and video featuring Umlilo and Stash Crew rapper Whyt Lyon. The music video is an extravaganza of fashion and movement. Filmed in Melville’s Glory nightclub, it intercuts grainy, VHS-style scenes of nightlife with crystal clear choreography, conceptualised to show off “Joburg’s fiercest queer talent”. Directed by Jono Kay, its choreography scenes focus on internationally renowned performers Henk Opperman and Lllewellyn Lulubelle Mnguni. The intensive costuming was provided by designer Caroline Olavarrieta, with makeup by Orli Meiri and Dylosaurus Rex creating a world of glamorous retrofuturism.

    The lushness of the images complements the driving simplicity of the song itself. DL Boi is a massive-sounding pop song, with a relentless beat throbbing like strobe lights under a chorus hook of “If you want me let you know”. It sounds instantly classic, like hearing a forgotten house anthem from the early ’90s. The song’s title references a ‘down low brother’, a closeted gay man trying to secretly hook up with gay men. In the hands of Umlilo and Whyt Lyon, this scenario becomes a tale of brash self-assertion, delivered with utterly compelling visual and musical flair.