As an exciting artist within the South African electronic music scene, Kid Fonque is set to give festival goers quite the experience at the Littlegig festival at the Wiesenhof farm in Stellenbosch on February 17 and 18.
Besides deejaying, Fonque is also a label manager and promoter, and is currently the producer and 5FM radio host of the Selective Styles show on Sundays from 5pm until 7pm.
Instead of following music trends, Fonque has aimed to push boundaries with deejaying, combining bass and broken beats with hip hop and every sub-genre of house music.
READ: Littlegig, the world’s only 24-hour music and lifestyle festival
Fonque has played in Hong Kong, Dubai, the UK and Switzerland and also shared the stage with Black Coffee for a Boiler Room set during 2013. The shift in Fonque’s career came in 2014 when he moved from being a DJ to executive producer on Kid Fonque and Friends.
The album spawned two singles, BE and Usangikhumbula – both climbing to the number-one spot on the YFM Urban Top 20 chart. In 2016, Fonque released a full-length collaboration with London’s D-Malice and released Stay True Sounds & Arco, which boasted a variety of artists, including Kev Brown, Melo B Jones, Atjazz and Ruby White.
We chatted to Kid Fonque about the state of EDM and what to expect at the Littlegig Festival.
How do you think electronic music has changed over the past decade?
Electonic music hasn’t changed too much in the last 10 years. Producers are being more adventurous, but the basics stay the same. The audience has widened for sure in the past 10 years.
What impact do you think the crossover of EDM and pop has had on music culture?
I don’t follow any of these genres but, from the outside, it looks like EDM has taken over the commercial airwaves.
What are you expecting from the Littlegig crowd?
Open-minded people from all walks of life. I saw some of the footage from last year’s event and got super excited to play – and now I am this year.
What’s the difference between having a set at a festival and having one at a club?
I always prepare something different for a festival set, lots of twists and turns musically.
Club gigs sometimes feel a little more direct. I am a little more adventurous at a festival.
Do you think South African hip hop has reached its peak and why?
I think it has just begun with SA hip hop. I don’t follow it religiously, but it’s hard to ignore.
Who do you think are the up-andcoming artists who we should be looking out for?
I have a show on 5FM on Sundays called Selective Styles where I focus on unearthing South African talent across genres.
These are def my top ones to look out for – Daev Martian, Sio, Fka Mash, Myazisto, Melo B Jones, Dwson… I could go on and on.
What can we expect from your set at Littlegig?
I always plan something special for a festival set, so this won’t be different. I’ll try to incorporate some new music with some Kid Fonque classics, it should be lots of fun.