Twenty-three-year-old Thandokazi Phanyaphanya ‘Thando Zide is excited to share the melodies from her new EP UMvulo, which debuts today. The  singer and songwriter was born to chorister parents, in South Africa' s famous township, Soweto, and as fate would have it, she would nurture her musical talent. 
 
Constantly surrounded by her music-loving family, she quickly assimilated into such a life. Exposed to her parents’ choir rehearsals and sonic family gatherings, Zide’s love for music was inevitable. She attended the National School of the Arts in Braamfontein, Johannesburg, which she describes as a place where the world of music opened up to her and her love for it was nurtured into a passion.
 
Inspired by rich indigenous sounds, through her music, by incorporating influences of jazz and contemporary sounds with indigenous African sounds from all over Africa, Zide aims to keep the African rhythm beating. She advocates for in-depth arts and culture education and exploration to aid self-expression as well as cultural pride and preservation.
 
UMvulo is the artist’s debut multi-track project, consisting of 5 tracks that touch on several different themes: love, heartbreak, faith, betrayal and healing. She goes on a storytelling and poetic journey through these themes inspired by personal experiences and the experiences of the people she’s encountered. 
 
With this project, the artist went on an explorative journey, experimenting with different sounds and genres, where she introduces and concludes the body of work with African rhythms, having ballads and contemporary sounds sandwiched in between. UMvulo, taken from the artist’s home language, IsiXhosa, for “Monday”, is the artist alluding to the beginning of her journey into self.
 

Connect with Thando
Instagram: @thando_zide 
TikTok: @thandozide
YouTube: @thandozide
#UMvulo