Local house DJ Culoe De Song’s music resonates with fans to such an extent that it once helped one deal with depression.
“A fan told me he cured his depression through listening to one of my older albums, Elevation,” he told The Star. Although the artist - whose real name is Culolethu Zulu - was just trying to be creative with the album, the humble musician never expected it to have such an effect on people.
“I find that crazy because I was just exploring my imagination with that album and someone took it as something more than that.
“I always make music from what has truly been a real thing in my life, I suppose people can relate to the stories I tell through my music.”
While the South African producer, DJ and remixer might only be 26 years old, his signature deep soul house beats - which he has become acclaimed for - have earned him legions of fans from around the globe.
The DJ has had people dancing the night away in party capitals in different parts of the world, including Miami, Paris, Switzerland and Sweden.
He recently returned from Brussels in Belgium and played a six-hour set this Easter weekend in Newtown, Joburg, as part of his Guzu Beats All Night Long DJ sets, which he also plans to take around the country.
But despite being one of the house DJs of choice to an international audience, Zulu insists that South Africa is his venue of choice.
“I have a soft spot for home.”
With so many accolades under his belt, the award-winning DJ plans to take his career to the next level with the release of his latest single, Rambo.
Zulu has always tried to be as creative as possible with his productions and his new hit is no different, but he found inspiration from an unexpected source.
“Rambo is inspired by my love for video games and the sound system
culture,” he said.
“There’s a feeling I enjoy in games, the feeling of victory.”
He added that this single allowed him to combine his love for music with gaming. “The energy in Rambo gives me that power and adrenaline rush.
“That’s how video games made me feel as a kid. Take that and combine it with dusty subwoofers, you get Rambo.”
Since the single was released last month, it has been dominating the music charts and airwaves, as well as dominating the club scene.
Zulu has come along way since his debut album, A Giant Leap, was released back in 2009 and he won the Best New Artist at the SA Music Awards that same year.
He explained that his love for his craft began when he was still a child and he used every opportunity to blast music wherever he went.
“In primary school, I was one of those weird boys who blasted house tapes using the classroom radio during intervals and free lessons.”
He explained that his big break came through a series of events between 2007 to 2009, which included a collaboration with fellow house music DJ legend Black Coffee. “I collaborated with Black Coffee on a track called 100 Zulu Warriors for his second album, I got accepted for the 2008 Red Bull Music Academy in Barcelona and in 2009 I released an EP called the Bright Forest through Innervisions, a Berlin-based big label in the electronic music scene.
“I got exposed to the world around this period and it’s magic.”
Since then, Zulu’s career has been a whirlwind of accomplishments, but he still has some things he wants to achieve.
“Right now I’m strengthening my craft as a solo artist, producer, disc jockey and storyteller,” he said.
On potential future collaborations, he said: “Exploring the continent that is my own mind, I haven’t thought about working with anyone as of late.”
Zulu added that although he loved playing at clubs and festivals, he now wanted to do something different.
“In the next five or so years I want do my own electronic music concerts that will expose my creative abilities on a larger scale.”