Music superstar, business visionary and international nomad Mr Eazi invites listeners to join him in South Africa on Chop Life, Vol. 1: Mzansi Chronicles (Choplife Limited/emPawa Africa), the debut release from his new pan-African music group, Choplife Soundsystem. Listen HERE.
The Pan-African dance music act’s first album is a 14-track dive into South Africa’s exploding amapiano sound that has become one of the world’s most thrilling and buzzed-about new music genres. Recorded between Cape Town and Johannesburg, guests on the project include South African music stars Ami Faku, Anatii, Nkosazana Daughter, Focalistic, Mellow & Sleazy, Major League DJz, Aymos, Mo-T, Moonchild Sanelly and a deep slate of emerging artists and producers.
“Mzansi Chronicles is an ode to the amapiano sound that has been the soundtrack to my parties and me going to clubs,” Mr Eazi says. “It’s me working with some of my favourite artists and capturing my interpretation of elements I love from the scene.”
Chop Life Vol. 1: Mzansi Chronicles is a formal introduction to “Choplife Soundsystem”, the Nigerian-born Mr Eazi’s new music lifestyle project and mobile party, which takes its name from West African pidgin slang meaning “enjoy life,” along with the traditional soundsystems that are the backbone of dancehall music culture.
In Jamaican parlance, a soundsystem is a mobile crew of DJs and MCs who present music together at public events, such as street parties, clubs and festivals. “Choplife Soundsystem” takes this tradition and gives it a distinctly African twist.
While Chop Life, Vol. 1 focuses on amapiano, future “Choplife Soundsystem” releases will span the map of African club and party music. “I like the idea of going to a new place for 30 days and making a project,” Mr Eazi says. “I’m maintaining the freedom I’ve always had. Being able to transpose myself from one city to another.”
Singles from the album include the viral hit single “Patek” (previously released in 2022 under Eazi’s own name) and the moody, “emopiano” vibes on “Wena,” featuring the sublime singer Ami Faku.
Mr Eazi is the primary vocalist on ChopLife recordings, and also serves as its MC — or Minister of Enjoyment— at live events, where he’s joined by resident selector DJ Edu (of BBC Radio fame), along with guest artists and DJs. “I’m going back to where I started from, when I was hosting the biggest parties at uni,” Mr Eazi says of this master of ceremonies role. “This is the part of music I presently love the most — curating experiences and DJ mixes. That’s the entire idea behind Choplife Soundsystem. I can collaborate with as many different artists and producers, executive produce and present it to the world.”
Production on Chop Life, Vol. 1: Mzansi Chronicles is handled largely by Mozambique’s DJ Tárico (known for “Yaba Buluku,” his 2021 smash featuring Burna Boy) with additional contributions from South African beatmakers Mellow & Sleazy, Ghetto Boy, Milan Rendall, LuuDaDeejay, Soul Jam and Mathondos, as well as Nigeria’s Type A.
Mr Eazi will take “Choplife Soundsystem” on the road this summer, with ChopLife pop-ups in Barcelona (July 7), Amsterdam (July 8), London (July 14) and Paris (July 16), and appearances at Afrobeats Festival in Berlin (Aug. 5), and Stockholm’s Kulturfestival in Sweden (Aug. 18).