He is definitely one of the “cool kids”, and once people catch on to him he will surely be a pleasant surprise.
Twenty-four-year-old rapper Duboiz, real name Sandile Kubheka, was Mabala Noise's “last born” until recently.
When Regi Nkabinde (CEO of Mabala Noise) signed him - back when the company was still Emabalabala Entertainment - he was the youngest and only hip hop artist in the stable.
Now, fresh from shooting a music video with American hip hop artist Tyga in Los Angeles for his song 'Dope Dream', the soft-spoken star shares pieces of himself with Tonight.
I almost want to use “meek” to describe his character as he begins speaking, but he is a rapper, and most of them prefer selling 'ego' as part of their image compared to 'meekness' (unless your name is Meek Mill). So, I ask him if that is how he would describe himself.
“No, not really...” he says, adding that the perfect word to use is “humble”.
He notices the doubt on my face and chooses not to elaborate.
Rather he speaks of growing up in New Castle, KwaZulu-Natal and how he misses home.
Trying to create the perfect moment for a “big break” into the industry takes a large chunk of his time and he doesn't want to miss it when it arrives.
He still speaks of success as a future event; I remind him that he just shot a music video with an international rapper.
Perhaps to show how genuine he is, he says, “I am not famous till my grandmother says so!”
That is the reason he will only drop singles for now, because he still needs to build a fan base.
Although he shares that “it goes down in the DM” and he mostly receives nothing but love and occasionally he even gets “nudes”.
One of the most successful hip hop artists to come up, Nasty C, formed part of the new stable mates signed to Mabala earlier this year. Upon the mention of Nasty C, Duboiz takes over the interview, perhaps due to the familiarity of the topic.
“I remember on Twitter a bunch of people talking about how they feel sorry for me because all theses big brands like Nasty C and Pro were going to overshadow my upcoming stardom. But honestly, I don't think that happened. Instead I found brothers and sisters in them and now I don't have to ‘fight' alone. Now I share my journey with people that understand and provide guidance and wisdom.
“And I don't mean to brag, but I just came back from the US because a well-known rapper called up and suggested a collabo and a music video. For me that is huge, because that means growth,” Duboiz expresses.
He also believes Tyga showed up for the song and the music video because he loves the music. Emphasising that at the end of the day “fame” is a by-product, the real thing is making good music.
He speaks of how he moved from being a Zola 7 fan from a distance, to being “family” to him.
He adds that the other advantage of his position in the industry is all the future “in house” collaborations that are brewing.
“When I finally drop an album, I don't just want it to be ‘15 great singles', I need it to be a story and until it makes for a story worth telling I won't let it out.”
IOL