Artist Feature: 'GOGO In The Fast Lane' - Sef Kombo Meets Ralf GUM

Germany's Ralf Benkert better know as Ralf Gum is one of the highest respected figures in the house music scene for the distinctive qualities in his exceptional productions and DJ-sets. He has been in the game for a long long time and released so many superb tracks under his own independant music label. He has exposed tracks such as 'Kissing Stranger' 'Above the Sky' Turn Me On' and just fresh off out the studio 'Hard Time For Lovers' with so many great releases and remixes he has done on other tracks. I knew I just had to chat to him!! He kindly took out time out of his hectic schedule to let us know what is going on with him...

Sef Kombo: Hey Ralf!! It’s actually an honour to speak with you!
Ralf GUM: Thanks Sef, not a problem to speak.. Always a pleasure

SK: How long have you actually been involved with Music?
RG: I am DJ-ing since 1991 and produce since 1993.

SK: What inspired you to make Soulful House? Being from such an electronica based country such as Germany, why didn't you follow suit?
RG: I think it just was in my genes. Already as a teenager I liked funk and soul, while others have been listening to radio or rock music. When I came in touch with soulful house, I knew that this genre allows me to combine everything I liked in other musical genres such as the fore mentioned or jazz, afro, cuban, etc. as well. Following suit and trends never was what I was interested in.

SK: Who were your inspirations within the House music game? And why?
RG: In the beginning it was mainly the New York scene with artists like Mood II Swing, or MAW. When I visited NY for the first time in 1990 the house bug just got me. I hadn’t attended parties like the one that were happening at that time in NY before and was fascinated by the positive energy.

SK: Your label is called GOGO Music, what is behind the name?
RG: The name has no deeper meaning. When I was searching for a label-name it was a coincidence that I saw this little funny car from the 70ies called 'Gogo Mobile' passing by. I thought GOGO Music sounds good and is memorable.

SK: Tell us about the latest single Hard Time For Lovers by Rocco & C. Robert Walker?
RG: Well what should I say. I love Rocco’s work since a long time and already had him on GOGO Music for a remix of my single with ‘Diamondancer – All This Love for You’. When he sent me the demo it was clear to me quite quickly, that I wanted to sign the song, as the vocal of Robert is great as well. The whole project fits perfect to what I want to release on the label to date. The remixers did a very good job as well and so I am satisfied with the release completely.


SK: So what's new for GOGO in the coming months? Are we to expect more of the same? And what vocalists are due to appear soon?
RG: There’s a lot in the pipeline and next up will be a track by South African vocalist Zano called “My Story”. An EP by Black Coffee will follow it and after that I will probably release my next single, which features Inaya Day on vocals.

SK: You've take a particular interest with South African artists, What is it about them and their music with interests you?
RG: There is currently coming a lot of great music from South Africa, as the scene there is alive. A lot of really good new talent emerges from there and if you take a look back on GOGO Music’s label history, I always tried to discover and present new talent and not only the already established big names.

SK: You was in South Africa over Christmas and New Year, how was that experience. How has the scene progressed over there since you was last there?
RG: The trip over Christmas was once again a great experience, but as I toured in SA only a few months before there hasn’t been a big change within the short time…

SK: How do you find the house scene today and the direction of the music?
RG: It is hard to answer this question in general, as it depends very much on the country and even within the countries it still can vary from region to region a lot. The music is currently very diverse with many trends in different directions and I appreciate that, as you don’t hear the same songs from every DJ.

SK: Can we expect any production collaborations in the near future?
RG: As I said there are a lot of things and productions in the pipeline, but I don’t want to let out all surprises already now ;-)

SK: Can you give us a quick gig guide as to where you are playing over the next 2 months?
RG:
Apr 01 2010 - GOGO Music meets Hausbrigade @ Creed - Karlsruhe (Germany)
Apr 03 2010 - COMMUNITY - Manchester (UK)
Apr 10 2010 - 360 - Dubai (UAE)
Apr 20 2010 - Disco - Sao Paulo (Brazil)
Apr 23 2010 - Atlantis - Basel (Switzerland)
Apr 24 2010 - Climax - Stuttgart (Germany)
May 02 2010 - Den & Centro - London (UK)
May 07 2010 - Southport Weekender - Southport (UK)

SK: Do you feel that ‘Kissing Strangers’ reaching number 1 on Traxsource 2008 has really propelled the label to a new level of quality house music?
RG: Actually I don't like the word "quality" in connection with music too much. There is good music and bad music and everybody has his own definition what is good or not. If we stick to the term "quality" nevertheless, I would say there have been "high quality" records on the label before as well, but of course the success of ‘Kissing Strangers’ helped to get even more publicity.

SK: It’s happened a fair few times for you now, but how does it actually feel when you do reach the top of the Traxsource charts?

RG: It is always a welcome confirmation for the work you do. Nevertheless I stay humble and feel happy about it every time again, as it would be the first time. It motivates me to continue to do what I do.

SK: Who is your favourite producer?
RG: It is always hard to reduce it to just one, but if I have to mention just one, I would say Phil Kullmann


SK: Who is your favourite vocalist?
RG: I don’t want to reduce it to just one here, as it depends what kind of vibe you expect from a vocalist for a certain track.

SK: What tracks have been on heavy rotation for you in the last 6 months?
RG:
Elements of Life feat Lisa Fischer & Cindy Mizelle – Into my life
Jerk House Connection feat. Akram - Each & Everyday (Rocco Deeper Mix)
N'dinga Gaba feat. Scotty P. - Queen
Reverend P feat. Jocelyn Mathieu - Those Days Are Gone (Animal House Club Mix)
Ralf GUM feat. Kafele – Complicated
Ralf GUM & Monique Bingham - Little W. 12th St.

SK: Tell us something we don’t know about Ralf GUM?
RG: I always said before that my left ear always itches, but to be honest the right one does as well.

SK: What is the best GoGo release!??
RG: Haha…all are good otherwise I would not have put them out.

SK: Haha!! I guess so, a big thanks for taking some time out to talk to me!
RG: Many thanks Sef!



LINKS

Listen & Buy The Latest Release Rocco & C. Robert Walker - “Hard Time For Lovers” Here

Check Out Ralf Gum's Website Here

Check out GOGO Music Here

Check out the GoGo Radioshow every Sunday 22:00-23:00 (GMT) on QH Radio

Artist Feature: 'Just Pursuing A Musical Dream' - Sef Kombo Meets Qness

Qness is undoubtedly one youngster with a lot of potential for raising the bar. His current work is a great example of how skilled he is, doubling up as a DJ he really get a sense of what will work in the clubs. He is already getting great exposure at home as well as international and I caught up with him and really got a true understanding of who Qness really is...

Sef Kombo: For us in the UK who don’t know Qness, Who are you and what do you do?
Qness: Firstly I just want to say thanks for having me; it is indeed an honour for me. Qness is a Musician/Producer/DJ who is just pursuing his musical dream of making “GOOD” music. That is how I would describe myself in a nutshell.

SK: How did you get into the music scene? Who were your inspirations?
Q: Most of us here in South Africa get onto the music scene through compilations. If you are unknown and you create a hot song, the record labels will usually feature your song on a well known and established DJ’s compilation album that way people will then get to know you from there. For me that is how it happened, my debut song “Fugama Unamathe”, which is the same song that made me famous, was first featured on legendary DJ Mbuso’s Phezulu Selections album and that’s how I got my first break.
In terms of inspiration I was inspired by Manoo, Abicah Soul, Dennis Ferrer, UPZ, Boddhi Satva, Osunlade, Rocco, Louie Vega, Frank Roger, DJ Mbuso, Black Coffee and of course Oskido, the one guy I looked up to all my life here in South Africa. Ironically, I was blessed in the sense that God gave me the privileged opportunity of being able to work with the bulk of the producers that inspired me right at the very inception of my musical career.

SK: How would you describe your music?
Q: Here in South Africa, I’ve had people ask me that question numerous times, especially people that have listened to my debut album “DJ Qness - On Cue Vol. 1”. A lot of my music has been remixed by especially very talented and highly respected A-list producers across the world so that kind of confuses people a lot because you can hear a Qness song on radio and it’s deep house, then later on you can hear another Qness tune and it sounds a little commercial, but in a nut shell I believe that the best way to describe my music would be to say I make ethnic-inspired Afro dance music. I fuse a lot of elements into the music that I make but the underlying factor would be that my music is very African and tends to get spiritual at some points. It is more or less a reflection of my being, which is why I make music about issues pertaining to our everyday life matters as we live in the universe.

SK: What is your studio set up like, what programs do you use to create your music?
Q: Funny enough, it is only recently that I really upgraded my studio. When I started, like everyone else I was using a very basic set up. “Fugama Unamathe” and “Uzongilinda” were all created through FL Studio, but I also tend to use a lot of live elements in my music as you would hear on “Fugama”. There is a live guitar on the track which just changes the feel of the whole song altogether. The other thing is that unlike most producers my age here at home in South Africa, I tend to use a lot of vocals in my music. For me the vocal is everything and I am blessed to have had the great opportunity of working with amazing talented vocalists such as Oluhle and Malehloka right at the very inception of my career.


SK: What are your thoughts on the South African House Scene? Where do you see it going?
Q: For me, South Africa is on its way to being the worldwide capital city of house music due to the immense amount of house music being consumed here. In South Africa house is a commercial success and we are actually one of the few countries in the world where a house CD can actually sell gold or platinum. We are a very blessed nation as the industry here has been able to make millionaires and pop stars out of its exponents.



SK: What’s you favourite track at the moment?
Q: I’m currently loving the UPZ mix of Uzongilinda, and like Andy Ward has described it numerous times, “It’s pure sex”. Avi Elman did a great job on that mix and for me he has been a great mentor and role model.

SK: What was the first DJ Set you played? Tell us a little bit about how it went and what you felt.
Q: The first ever set I played consisted of tunes like “Summer Daze” by Nick Holder and for me at the time I just wanted to be famous, lol!!! I had been producing tunes in my bedroom since I was very young, but in the studio no one can see you so for me I wanted to get out and get exposure. I wanted to communicate with the actual audience that buys music and that helped me a lot because from there onwards I would produce songs and go and test them in front of crowds whenever I play.

SK: You were in Europe recently playing some gigs. How did that come about and where did you travel to?
Q: I guess with the international releases people overseas were starting to hear and notice my music hence the opportunity to play overseas arose. I was making “GOOD” music and I guess the people who listened to my music overseas wanted to see me hence the gigs. I have played in Belgium, France and I will be going to Japan very soon.

SK: How was you received during your sets? What was your favourite and worst moment?
Q: I guess playing at home in South Africa is totally different because you already know what type of songs are huge on the streets, when you get to Europe everything changes you have to read your crowd and assume what they will dance to in a short space of time, lol!!! My favourite moment was seeing all those people cheering and dancing to my sets, my worst was when I visited a couple of studios and realized that production-wise we still have quite a way to go in South Africa to emulate world wide production standards in terms of gear, and hardware etc. but however I do still feel that we are getting there. We are actually improving more each and every day.

SK: Is there a big future for Afro Deep house to be successful in Europe?
Q: Yes, I think there is. But we must avoid getting too monotonous and all sounding the same, which is why I always try to be different so that people can tell the difference between a Qness song and any other track.

SK: What is your vision for the ‘Qness Sound’ where would you like to take your music?
Q: I have always dreamt of taking my music to the world and being heard not just at home but across the globe, of which I have somehow achieved especially through my EPs and releases on Traxsource and the other international download sites, but then again for me it is only the beginning. I guess the real challenge that I have now is consistency and keeping my head up, while remaining as humble as possible and counting my blessings each and every day. I want to grow the “Qness sound” and sort of create a legacy of my own, to set a trend that other youngsters can follow through the music that I am making. I want to inspire others and to add my own worth to keeping this universe as positive as possible.



SK: You have now released two EPs, Fugama Unamathe and more recently Uzongillinda, how you feeling about the material you have released for DJs to play?
Q: I honestly feel honoured to have been recognized by these two of my role models Boddhi Satva and Avi Elman, to the extent of being signed by them. I always looked up to Boddhi and to UPZ, but to be signed by them for me was something else. There I was having a dream and one day I pinched myself and realized that I was no longer dreaming, my dream had become reality. To have DJs across the world buying and playing my music is just so amazing. It’s something that I wished for but I never saw it coming so for me it has been great. God has indeed blessed me abundantly and I am forever thankful.

SK: You have a lot of remixes from the likes of Abicah Soul, Marie Joly and Culoe de Song to name a few, how did those come about? Is this something that will continue on future releases.
Q: As long as I continue releasing EPs then the trend will continue. The remixes were mostly co-ordinated by myself and the labels for the EPs. I will continue to work with talented remixers wherever I can for as long as I release more EPs, hey.

SK: What’s in the pipeline to be released?
Q: I’m currently working on the “Miles Away” EP which ironically features a guy called Vindo Vinchento on the vocals, the same guy I co-wrote the lyrics of “Uzongilinda” with.

SK: Who would you like to work with in the near future outside of South Africa?
Q: I’ve always wanted to work with Manoo, Dennis Ferrer, Rocco, Louie Vega and Osunlade. I’ve looked up to them since time immemorial.

SK: Which producers are you feeling at the moment?
Q: Manoo, Rocco, UPZ (Avi Elman), Abicah Soul, Dennis Ferrer, and Louie Vega.

SK: What’s your thoughts on the ever growing digital music website AfrodesiaMP3? How has it helped you and has it helped the Afro House scene?
Q: Afrodesia has been the website channelling the Afro house revolution for us here in South Africa. It is through Afrodesia that we have been able to get our music out. My first ever experience (and for many others here) on a digital download website was on Afrodesia. The majority of the labels and the producers here in SA don’t have access to Traxsource, iTunes, Beatport, and Juno etc, hence Afrodesia has been the one playing a very instrumental role in helping us showcase our talent on a digital download level. Digital downloads are, after all the future as CD sales are declining very rapidly so we look up to the guys at Afrodesia a lot.

SK: I’m sure everyone would like to know, which is the best South African city for clubbing and why?
Q: I think Joburg is still the place to be, although Durban is coming up pretty fast, reason being Joburg is still the place where everything happens first. If Kanye West comes to SA, he will perform first at Joburg, but that is changing relatively fast coz cities like Durban are coming up real fast, lol!!!

SK: How excited are you about the World Cup coming to your country and do you thing such a big event could help the Afro House scene?
Q: I don’t think there is anyone who isn’t excited about the world cup right now. So many privileges and opportunities are arising simply because we are playing host nation this year and for the Afro house scene it is an advantage in the sense that we will get a first hand opportunity to showcase our music to the millions of visitors that will be coming to South Africa.

SK: Tell us some very random that we don’t know about Qness?
Q: Large masses of water scare the hell out of me, for example when I drive next to a lake or huge dam, or even a bridge I get scared to death, but the funny thing is that I do swim in the beach, hey.

SK: Where can we find you online?
Q: Online you can find me on Facebook, just search “Qness Ndlovu” and add me, then on myspace my url is myspace.com/mrqness, while my website is www.djqness.com. On twitter I am on twitter.com/djqness and on skype I am Qness.ndlovu.

SK: Thanks Qness
Q: Thanks to you, my brother.

LINKS

Listen & Buy Qness' Latest Release Uzongilinda (Incl. UPZ & Abicah Soul Mixes) Here

Listen & Buy Fugama Unamathe Here

Artist Feature: Two Cultured Minds Sef Kombo Meets The Infinite Boys

With the Afro Power Series doing so well and a great feature on Rowick Deep in November 09, I felt it only right to catch up with another hot up and coming producer from Africa. This time in the shape of the duo The Infinite Boys having featured already on Afro Power Vol.1 and Vol.2 and on the forthcoming Vol.3. I caught up with them to briefly find out a lil bit more about these two amazing talents. Sef Kombo: Who makes up The Infinite Boys and what's behind the name? Infinite Boys: Infinite Boys is formed by two dynamic duo brothers (Raphael and Antony)........Infinite Boys its a gradually growing brand, lifestyle and with infinite passion for music. SK: When did you guys start producing/djing and what artists were your inspiration? IB: We started both djing and producing in 2005......Locally we were inspired by Oskido, Mbuso, DJ Fresh and internationally we were inspired by Blaze, Louie Vega, Mr. V and Kerri Chandler SK: Describe The Infinite Boys sound? IB: We mainly focusing on deep house and afro house and we would like to experiment on lounge and jazz SK: What is your studio setup like? IB: Samson Studio Monitors, M-Audio Midi keyboard, Mobile Pre USB Preamp Audio Interface and B-1 Behringer Condenser Microphone.............but its still a Mobile Studio hey SK: Tell us a lil bit about your label Infinite Records IB: Infinite Records was established late in 2008 by Infinite Boys (Raphael and Antony).The label mainly focuses on undiscovered talented producers worldwide who produce afro house, deep tech, deep house and lounge SK: How is the scene in South Africa? IB: We so proud about the scene this side because South Africa has been rated the best country to appreciate house music SK: Where do you see the Afro house scene going? IB: The Afro scene we feel is the future because it really expresses our culture and represent our ancestors SK: Who are some of the producers your feeling at the moment? IB: Locally we feeling all Infinite Records crew, Internationally we are feeling Boddhi Satva, Halo, Atjazz and Rocco SK: You hooked up with Qness to do a deeper mix of Uzongilinda, how did that come about? IB: We first heard the Abicah Soul remix on radio and fell in love with the vocals and we approched Qness to hand us the seperates to do additional mixes, so thats when we did the deeper mix. SK: Who else will you be working with in the near future? Who would you like to work with? IB: We'll be releasing our EP with City Deep owned by Halo and we busy with the remix of Aero Manyelo ft. Ernest Masiku that will come out under Nulu Music label owned by Anane Vega. We would like to work with Rocco, Blaze, Atjazz and Louie Vega SK: We see the likes of Black Coffee & Culoe de Song doing videos for their tracks, is that an avenue you wanna pursue soon? IB: Yes thats an avenue we wana pursue but in the long term SK: What's else is next for you? IB: We busy with our radio show (Vogue) that will be showcasing exclusive tracks produced by upcoming producers and mainly focuses on deep house, afro house and lounge. SK: What would you say is the Infinite Boys best productions? IB: Qness ft. Malehloka - Uzongilinda (Infinite Boys Deeper Mix) Mr O ft. Richard The Percussionist - Khoison (Infinite Boys Roots Mix) Infinite Boys ft. Lil Soul - Dreams (Vocal Mix) Infinite Boys - Marimba Soul (Afrotech Mix) SK: Tell us something we dont know about The Infinite Boys IB: Raphael is doing Btech in internal Auditing at UNISA and Antony is doing Sound Engineering at ASE SK: Thanks guys, it's been a pleasure IB: Peace Remember to catch The Infinite Boys' music on Afro Power Vol.1 & Vol.2!!! Also check out and purchase their Deeper Mix of Qness - Uzongilinda Here Their entire cataloge of released music on AfrodesiaMP3 Here

'Music Is Life' - Artist Feature: Rowick Deep

After the current success of Afro Power Vol.1 and newly released Vol.2, I felt it only right to take it a step further and feature a producer on the compilations. Rowick Deep is an exciting producer who has just released his debut Album entitled ‘Music Is Life’ and I caught up with man himself to ask him some questions.

Sef Kombo: For those who don't know about you, tell us where you are from and what you do?
Rowick Deep: Hi, go by the name of Rowick Deep and I am Producer/DJ who is based in South Africa. I produce world-class music and have shared the decks with some of the pioneers of dance/house music in Africa.

S.K: What is it like producing in Africa?
R.D: It’s a quite exciting because South Africa is one of the world’s largest consumers of house music. So naturally, the environment (Music industry) is any producer’s dream.

S.K: How would describe your sound?
R.D: My sound is diverse and unique to its target market. I produce tracks which relate to most people. I believe that music should touch everyone.

S.K: How have you been influenced by your surroundings?
R.D: I ‘ve come from a musical background. You could say that my uncle, Dominique, really sparked my passion for music. As to now, anything from a song on the radio to a track produced by another producer influences my music. But I try to channel those influences in a good way.

S.K: What has been your response from the people in your country to your music?
R.D: The response has been great, I mean, I’ve been around the industry for the past decade or so and the fanbase is growing each day. The people in South Africa are very receptive to new material. As a result its not difficult to capture the audience.

S.K: What direction are you looking to take your music?
R.D; I’d like to continue producing, and maybe one day, I’ll be the jack of trades in the sense that I’ll produce for other genres beyond house/dance music.

S.K: What tools are you using to create your music?
R.D: I use software programs Q-Base and Reason. Both I find are quite user –friendly.



S.K: So Your Latest Project ‘Music Is Life’, What can we expect from the album?
R.D: My album basically takes the listener on a musical journey of my growth thus far. There is a lot of diversity in the album, because I wanted to cater to a wider market. I would say there’s a little bit of everything for everyone.

S.K: What is the reason behind the title name 'Music is Life'?
R.D: ‘Music is my life’-I live, eat and breathe music. It flows in everything I do. And a lot of people can relate to the title, so I guess it was suitable.

S.K: How long did it take you to put the album together?
R.D: The first draft took about 3 months, then another month or two perfect the tracks for the master mixing. So in total about 5 months.

S.K: You have a album tour, can we more have information about that?
R.D: As I am based in South Africa, my tours are in and around the country. I’m currently touring the “Music is Life Tour” at all major cities in South Africa. But would love to get the opportunity to tour in the UK and Europe, to share my music with the world.

S.K: How do you feel the Afro House scene right at this minute? Where are the places to go?
R.D: At the moment, its booming. There is a great buzz around it and getting guys like Black Coffee who are producing top quality music is always a great way to market to talent in South Africa. In South Africa, the dj’s travel to the masses. So the fans usually follow where ever the dj’s go, which is throughout the country.



S.K: Who should we be also looking out for in the Afro house scene?
R.D: In South Africa, I would say Black Coffee, Culoe de Song and myself, of course!

S.K: Are many African producers collaborating with producers outside of Africa, who would you like to work with?
R.D: Not many producers are venturing beyond the African shores when producing tracks. Most are concerned with the different variations of style the both producers may bring to the sound/track. I aspire to work with the likes of Boddha Satva, Rocco, Frank Roger, Charles Webster to name a few.

S.K: Are you aware of any UK house producers?
R.D: Yes, I am producers such as Kinetic P, Steve Lawler , Soulsearcher, etc.

S.K: What you advice to any young people in Africa looking to get into music?
R.D: Basically, just work hard, remain focused on your goals, and work smartly (market yourself well-let your reputation sell you as a brand)

S.K: What is next for you?
R.D: Releasing “Music is Life Vol.2”, to grow my label RoDeep Records and to just keep producing those massive floor-fillers!!

S.K: Where can we catch you DJin? and Where can we find yourself and music online?
R.D: In and around South Africa and Africa. You can find more about me on my website RowickDeep.com and find my current album ‘Music is Life’ and other material including remixes on Afrodesia

S.K: Thanks Rowick!!
R.D: Sho Sef

Remember to catch Rowick’s music on Afro Power Vol.1 & Vol.2!!!

Here is one video from Rowick's album entitled: 'Music Is Life'