ANATII

You must be a seriously skilled 15-year-old to make a whole industry sit up and take notice. But that’s exactly what Bhisho-born Anathi Mnyango—better known by his stage name, Anatii—did in 2008, producing a track for South African rapper Morale. Since then, his fresh take on music production, as well as his overall rejuvenation of Afropop, neo-soul and hip-hop, has made him an in-demand artist on both sides of the recording studio window, working with titans of the industry like DJ Khaled, Omarion and Mzansi artists Lebo M, Cassper Nyovest, HHP, AKA, Nasty C and Danny K. Because Anatii is known for writing intricate, multilingual songs around catchy rhyme schemes, it’s not surprising that fans quickly dubbed him the number one “Afro-conscious lyricist”. 2016 finally saw the eloquent hitmaker drop his debut LP ARTIIFACT to chart-topping success. Impressive—even more so considering this Xhosa word warrior isn’t even close to peaking yet.