Bang Boom Pop – It’s Ms Cosmo

Jifa Azumah

A DJ first but also known as a ‘Fashion Killer‘ Nonqaba Nozuko Rwaxa aka Ms Comso has many titles under her belt. Shall we call her a Heavy Weight?! Not only is she a Producer and a TV Personality, she is also on the radio air waves.

Can we go deeper…Ms Cosmo is an award winning DJ who has shared stages with International Acts such as: Kanye West, Chance The Rapper and Kendrick Lamar to name a few. She has become a household name throughout Africa and internationally acclaimed. A true jack of all trades to say the least.

Growing up, who and what were your musical influences?

“I listened to all genres. Thanks to my dad I loved Jazz music from George Benson & Hugh Masekela. My cousin introduced me to Hip Hop with the likes of:  MC Lyte, Missy Elliot, TLC, Foxy Brown. I grew to love Ludacris, Destiny’s Child and HHP locally” .

I’m all for individuality and uniqueness, give us a behind the scenes to the name Ms Cosmo?

“I needed an alias as I was still working at the bank when I started and didn’t want my personas to clash. So I went for drinks with a friend and after a few cosmopolitan cocktails later, he dubbed me DJ Cosmo, I added the Ms for distinction that I’m female. It came together because I’m a cosmopolitan girl, living in a cosmopolitan city, playing urban cosmopolitan music”, she brags.

School us a little on how you were able to break the barriers in this male dominated industry?

“It took a lot of hard work, perseverance and dedication. Practice keeps you ahead of the curve. The guys supported me as I was coming up by giving me tips etc so that helped”.

There’s alot of PHD “Put Her Down” Syndrome amongst females in every industry and generally in life. How does Ms Cosmo dust that off?

“I support the girls and they support me back. I’m a big advocate for females in music and in every industry, so I would rather hire a female before a male to empower her, push her music or just give her props on social media. We only have each other to keep us ahead”, she says.

I am Ms Cosmo put Respek on my name because….

” I am real, confident and I rock a stage better than most of the guys in the game”.

When Dj’ing what do you try to communicate to the audience through your vibe?

“I always try to keep the crowd happy, give them an experience and make sure they feel a sense of euphoria when jamming to one of my sets”.

As a music producer which artist stands out  most right now and which you would you like to collaborate with?

“There’s plenty doing big things right now, the list is pretty long but I intend on working with some up and coming artists in the near future. SA has a lot of talent and we need to share it with the world “, she said.

If you could eternally be stuck in one year’s music scene, which year would it be? 

“Definitely the early 2000s! The music was just so pure and vibrant. Girls were getting their respect, R&B and Hip Hop made amazing musical fusions and the music is still timeless”.

20 nice things is already six months in, besides producing are there any projects you busy cooking up?

“My current projects are the music of course. I’m working on new material so I’m excited for that, radio is still my love so I work on keeping the show relevant, and I’ve recently started an eventing concept call SHE Social which aims to give women in music and arts a platform to shine. It happens once every season in Braamfontein. I want it to be a solid event that everyone attends that happens to be headlined by the ladies”, she concludes.