Ycee still hangs on to ‘Omo Alhaji’ for dear life

Ycee who broke into the scene with ‘Kondo’, and amplified his reach and value by the success of ‘Jagaban’ isn’t looking to move past his next single anytime soon. The Tinny Entertainment rapper released Omo Alhaji in 2015, and has seen it blossom to become an early year hit song.

‘Omo Alhaji’, which was produced by E-Kelly, has kept the singer’s footprint in the pop scene, and the success from the single is still alive in the heart of Ycee. That’s why we have a remix right now, from Uhuru producer and singer, DJ Maphorisa.

Themba Sekowe, popularly known by his stage name DJ Maphorisa, is a South African record producer, disk jockey who can sometimes feature vocals in songs. As a record producer with a blend of House music and Afropop, he has worked with and has received production credits from several local and international notable artists including Wizkid, Kwesta, Uhuru, Drake, Black Coffee, and Runtown among others. DJ Maphorisa is presently signed to his record label New Money Gang Records upon quitting Kalawa Jazmee Records.

On paper, he brings all of that experience and more on to ‘Omo Alhaji’, by collaborating with Ycee for a remix. But there is not much to see here. Maphorisa simply takes the music, strips it of its beat, and layers it on to a template house beat, which has become clichéd, due to a long history of usage in South Africa. If anything, the song sounds the same, save for a verse by DJ Maphorisa, which fails to blend in.

For the dancefloor the relativity of the single will definitely be a favorite for rotation, and perhaps that is what the duo go for in the new video. This all for DJ Maphorisa’s profit though, and he scores heavy on this one.

As for Ycee, sales of this new song will be a boon, but as the conversations go, this does not make him relevant, neither does it paper over the glaring fact that he needs new music to keep his brand on the frontburner.