If you don't know who DJ LAG is then where have you been? Lwazi Asanda Gwala (get it? LAG!) was born in Clermont in Durban and has since become known as the man who helped make Gqom the global sensation is it now.
The 24 year-old DJ and Producer has spent a majority of the past few years touring the world. He has played major festivals and has had his beats used by the likes of Beyonce and Jay-Z. He is known around the world as the "Godfather of Gqom" for how he was early to introduce Gqom in to international clubs.
DJ LAG still releases his music direct to fans and outside of interviews to promote his work, the trailblazer rarely does any press. Even so, he remains one of the most influential Producers in Gqom. So much so that many artists, including Distruction Boyz, have been called out for ripping off many of his older mixtape tracks.
It's been an amazing road to success for LAG but he's not done yet! What does he have his eye on next? A Grammy! DJ LAG posted on social media last night to let fans know that he has officially become a member of the Recording Academy! A major move for a South African act!
Instagram embed
For those who don't know, this is step 1 in being able to WIN a Grammy! Essentially, anyone can submit their music to be considered to be nominated for a Grammy be it as an individual or through their label. But, that person cannot submit anything until they are an official member of the Recording Academy. Then from there you can be eligible to both vote for other categories and submit your own albums for nominations.
The timing of this is amazing too! Black Panther's soundtrack last year featured many Gqom inspired beats, South African artists like Babes Wodumo and it won an award at this year's ceremony. This shows that it is prime time for more South African musicians, producers and engineers to get their music noticed and reviewed by the Grammy's and who better to lead the charge than LAG?
We can't wait to see how far his journey will take him. Maybe sooner rather than because we'll have someone other than Ladysmith Black Mambazo bring us Grammys!
