Producers and vocalists in the house music genre are often a match made in music heaven. But more times than not, they go off to work with other people. So it’s rare to find a producer and a vocalist who actually decide to become a group in this genre.
That decision has fared well for Junior Taurus and Lady Zamar who are nominated for two South African Music Awards (Samas) this year. Up for Best Duo/Group and Best Dance Album for their debut, Cotton Candy, the group is on its way to enjoying success.
I caught up with Lady Zamar, who could not contain her excitement about the nominations. She tells me: “For Junior Taurus, being a music producer for 12 years and never getting where he wanted to be with this music, it’s really exciting. For me, it’s mind-blowing. It feels like a tribute, like saying: ‘you can do this’. A lot of vocalists, especially in house music, don’t get a chance to be nominated for awards in their first year.”
Best Duo/Group of the Year is considered one of the big five categories of the Samas. In the Best Dance category, this duo is up against the likes of Black Coffee and Mi Casa. So it’s no wonder that Lady Zamar wants to win both.
“Aaaah,” she screams, “I wish they would just call us like: ‘And the winner is…’”
I ask if she has her acceptance speech ready and she responds: “Always! Since I was in high school, I always dreamt of winning awards. I love Black Coffee and used to watch people like Mi Casa on TV when I was younger. I was nowhere near these things so it’s humbling. It’s an opportunity only God can give.”
She also adds: “I love the South African house scene. I think what it needs is more up-and-coming musicians – just so that the older artists don’t get too comfortable. Because that’s the worst thing that can happen for the industry. I hope no one – including myself – gets comfortable because it’s a very inspirational playground.”
Junior Taurus’s friend was so inspired after hearing Lady Zamar at a poetry session that he knew the pair had to work together.
As Lady Zamar remembers: “I met his best friend at the time at a poetry session. I used to freestyle a lot and one day he heard me and approached me. He said: ‘There’s a guy I know who makes music, come through’.
“So we went to the studio in 2011 and did this song called Around the World. And that was it! Every time they wanted to make music, they’d come collect me at my place. You blink and three years have passed.
“Then in 2014, Junior gave someone our Mamelodi song and that’s how people started to get to know us. He put it on datafilehost and in two weeks, it had over 100 000 downloads.”
Mamelodi became a huge club banger. It received a lot of radio airplay and was played on TV. For artists who are from Acacia, in the north of Pretoria, it meant a lot to the duo for the Mamelodi township to show them so much love.
Lady Zamar exclaims: “Mamelodi booked us a lot. Every week we were there at least twice. One night, we were driving back from a gig in Mamelodi and Junior said: ‘I think we need to make a song to pay homage to Mamelodi’. I mean, they had been booking us all the time and if you looked at Pretoria show line-ups, our names were always there because of that.
“He just said: ‘Just write how you feel about the place.’”
Lady Zamar writes a lot about her real-life experiences so only time will tell if a song about awards comes out.
Junior Taurus and Lady Zamar’s Cotton Candy is in stores and online.