Langa Mavuso explores the stages of heartbreak on ‘Langa’
Three years in the making, Langa Mavuso’s debut album, simply titled ‘Langa’, is, like all his work, a personal and honest project that this time round sees the 26-year-old singer reflecting on heartbreak and the loss of a relationship. Describing it as chapters 23 through 26 of his life, the 12-track album sees Langa reflecting on the emotions he went through during that time and follows him as he deals with the pain of loss before moving into a state of confusion and loss of self and finally finding resolution.
The cover art speaks to this concept, with the three faces a symbol for the three phases Langa went through. “It’s actually one face and two mirrors on the side and the two faces you see are reflections of the one. I wanted it to be clear that this album is about reflection, it’s one body but in three parts, hence the three heads,” he explains.
Sonically, this concept is conveyed through the changing sounds of the album which, rather than being ballad-heavy, sees Langa’s rich voice flow over tracks with influences that range from hip hop to neo-soul, contemporary gospel to pop. “Initially, I thought I’d write this big R ‘n’ B album with ballads and love songs and I ended up writing a completely opposite album. Sonically it doesn’t sit in once place, it evolves as you continue to listen,” notes Langa.
“Sonically it doesn’t sit in once place, it evolves as you continue to listen.” - Langa Mavuso
The initial pain can be heard on the albums’ first single, 2019’s “Mvula”, incidentally also the first track he wrote for the album. Written in the early post-breakup stages, the tracks sees Langa crooning of a sparse piano arrangement. “I wrote [‘Mvula’] in the beginning stages of the breakup and wanting to express the pain and anguish of losing that love but also understanding that it no longer had a place in my life,” Langa recalls adding that “‘Mvula’ was the perfect first song because it captured the emotion that I felt at that time. I needed to cleanse myself of the love and let go of it.”
Growing not only emotionally but also artistically over the past three years, the sonic and lyrical differences between the simplicity of “Mvula” compared to the soulful “Love Lost”, the album’s closing track and his most recent, are stark and reflect this artistic evolution. “‘Mvula’ was more simplistic with a great deal of poetic use in the songwriting to avoid detail. It came from a place of avoiding too much truth in the music,” states Langa adding that “[b]y the time we get to ‘Love Lost’, I just tapped into a different part of myself as a musician but also even in my writing, it’s way more open and honest and clear.”
“I just tapped into a different part of myself as a musician but also even in my writing.” - Langa Mavuso
Featuring a number of collaborations that range from Yanga Chief to Aimee George, the initial strategy to bring in big names in order to create a greater impact gave way to collaborating with friends. “Those people who were bigger and who could elevate the project in terms of their names, it didn’t feel like the right kind of fit,” says Langa. “So I just started to call my friends when I was recording,” he adds.
Langa Mavuso by John Baloyi
This led to him inviting Zoë Modiga and Manana round to his place to catch up, eat and create the album’s penultimate track, the dreamy, guitar-led “I Wish”. “It was a nice reunion for us because we sang together at UCT in a band called Soul Sessions.” Working with friends also let Langa feel safe, allowing for more truth to come out in the music. “The music is so personal, to have someone that you know you can be open and honest with allows the process of creating those songs, it makes it easier for you to be honest.”
Having already released three singles, the most recent being the soulful “Panther” with Yanga Chief, Langa is largely letting the fans decide what comes next. “People are resonating so much with “Pretend”. It’s doing quite well, we have shot a video for it which is coming. We’ve also got a music video for ‘Panther’ coming out. We’re just letting people inform where we’re going,” he notes.
Langa Mavuso by John Baloyi
Langa’s is, however, particularly looking forward to performing again as that will allow him to bring the album to life. “I’m more excited about getting back into shows because I feel like that’s where we start to extend the stories of the songs and make them even more exciting to interact with.” Although his primary focus is the album, a feature on Yanga Chief’s album is coming as well as a feature on a Mvzzle production, who worked with DJ Zinhle on “Umlilo”.
Writing the album was a cathartic experience for Langa, allowing him to face the emotions of the breakup head-on. Having healed and found resolution, Langa is now ready to move forward and explore new things, rather than ruminate on old emotions. “I’m glad that we’ve gone through the journey. I just want to feel new feelings and write new songs and really just be open to new things,” Langa says, stressing the importance of moving forward. “I know a lot of people were expecting a ‘Sunday Blues’, but my thing is I wrote that song, I don’t need to write it over and over again. That period of my life has passed. I just try to live truly, love fearlessly and just grow from it all, because it’s important to heal and grieve old emotions so that you can make space for new ones.”
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This article first appeared on RedBull.com