The first ladies of record label New Money Gang - Nicole Elocin, Nia Pearl and Bontle Smith - have joined forces to release the single “Mbokodo”.
Elocin, Pearl and Smith are well-established artists and have been dominating in the amapiano space. All three women have had a go at working with label boss DJ Maphorisa, who is heavily influential in Mzansi music.
Elocin is known for the amapiano smash hit "Bella Ciao" with the talented Tyler ICU. She grew up between the Eastern Cape and Kempton Park and began her music career in a church choir at the age of 11.
She has worked with numerous amapiano talents such as Kabza De Small, Mas Music, Sha Sha, Pearl and Mlindo the Vocalist.
Pearl grew up in Umtata in the Eastern Cape and her love for music began in primary school. After varsity, where she studied contemporary music, Pearl has worked with the likes of Mobi Dixon on “Ten Steps forward”, Kabza De Small on the smash “Nia Lo”, and Mas Musiq on “Wami”.
Growing up in Tembisa, Smith always knew that she was going to become an artist and perform on stage. Smith started her musical career whilst attending the University of Johannesburg and in 2018 she worked with one of Africa’s biggest musicians, Cassper Nyovest on the song “Gets Getsa”.
On their collaborative track, the women featured Da Muziqal Chef and Visca. “Mbokodo” is a song about mothers who are grinding for their families.
“This song is about all mothers out there, a normal mom who is pushing, grinding to make sure her family is sorted. The kids are sorted. It is for single moms, young or old who are just working hard,” said Smith.
“We just want to thank our mothers for their prayers, for everything they have done in our lives. The influence, the impact that they have in our lives contributing to the women that we are today.”
Pearl said the song was initially meant to be released in August, during Women's Month, but creativity sometimes takes its own course.
“It is a bit late but we were just celebrating women's month when we were recording ‘Mbokodo’,” she said.
When the idea of the ladies working with each other was suggested to them, it was a no-brainer to do it.
Smith said what pushed her to collaborate with the other two was the desire to promote the idea of women working more together in the industry.
The musicians are all about women empowerment, encouraging each other to do better and emphasising the importance of women supporting each other, not only in the music industry but also outside of it.
“It’s such a tough world, amapiano and being a woman is not easy, so I think for us this was a special moment for us to stand tall and appreciate being a female artist,” Pearl said.
Smith, Pearl and Elocin all had a good experience working together, and having a relationship outside of music made things easier.
“Outside of music, we would go to lunch. The studio was not a new experience, I loved the fact that we didn't have to try too hard,” shared Elocin.
“Working with Nia and Bontle has been such an adventure, it's so fun. Bontle is always making jokes in the studio, we will just vibe, we just freestyle. I've learnt that Nia is very diligent when it comes to writing. Nia’s lyrics are always so deep and lasting.”
Pearl said when it comes to keeping studio time, Smith is strict and kept reminding the other two that they were musicians and not there to play around.
At a music camp, the women got to bond with each other, doing the simple things that one does with family, like waking up and cleaning the house.
“It was such a beautiful opportunity for us to live as a family, cause ideally we are a ‘New Money Gang’ family but we never get to spend time together because people are busy,” said Pearl.
While all three women brought something different to the table, they were able to creatively come together easily, create a great track and also a stronger sisterhood.
Their journey of working together is far from over. The women said their fans can expect an EP from them which will be a blend of their different creativity.
“It has delayed a bit but as you know these things happen. At the end of the day, we are creatives, we are trying to build our individual careers. We are trying to find the right time and artists and producers. We are almost done with the project, it’s coming and going to be so beautiful,” said Pearl.