The meaning of Yaadt music seems to change from person to person. It is described as a sound, a feeling, a genre and a culture. It is a phenomenon that resists conventional definition, but permeates through Western Cape communities.
A genre, a sound, a feeling, a culture: These are some of the terms used to describe Yaadt music. Yaadt seems to mean different things to different people, but most agree that it is a Cape Town-born sound.
The perception of Yaadt is changing, says Mandy Alexander, a writer and DJ based in Cape Town. “You’ll see that songs on TikTok, the songs that are being used, are lots of Yaadt music,” she says. When a song becomes popular, people on TikTok joke that a Yaadt remix will be made the next day, she explains. In this way, Yaadt is spreading past the Western Cape through social media, she adds. PHOTO: Joel Ontong
Yaadt: A sound from the Cape
Yaadt music is a “sonic experience of Cape Town and the Western Cape”, says Mandy Alexander, a writer and DJ based in Cape Town.
The term Yaadt can be seen as an “umbrella term for various types of genres”, says Kalo Canterbury, also known as K-$, who is a Cape Town-based DJ and activist.
Yaadt can feature “old-school” songs that are nostalgic in coloured communities, according to Canterbury. “It’s the music that I grew up with listening to, that’s got a distinctly kind of coloured sound,” he explains.
Yaadt can also have elements of house music or involve the remixing of popular songs, according to Jordan Rudolph, also known as DJ Instinct Junior, a Stellenbosch-based DJ. He cites the remixing style of DJ Chello, another Stellenbosch-based DJ, as influential in the Yaadt scene.
I don’t just think it’s a genre. I think it’s a feeling, a culture
“As a concept, for coloured people, it’s music that we listen to on the Yaadt (yard) and that can mean very different things,” says Canterbury. “The Yaadt can be anywhere, anyplace, anytime as long as you got yourself [and] music.”
The “Yaadt” can be a parking lot, the kitchen of a close friend, or a backyard, explains Canterbury.
“It’s a genre that brings people together,” says Olivia Daniels, a DJ based in Cape Town.
In her experience as a DJ, she has seen how certain communities respond more to Yaadt than other forms of music, such as Hip-Hop.
But Yaadt is not just about the music. “I don’t just think it’s a genre. I think it’s a feeling, a culture,” says Alexander.
Early prototypes of Yaadt music involved taking famous songs from artists such as Celine Dion or Whitney Houston and putting a tribal beat over them, says Alexander. Since then, the term has come to represent something wider.
Being a disc jockey (DJ) requires a range of traits and skills, such as having a wide music knowledge, understanding the tempo and sequencing of songs, being able to read and understand a crowd and the ability to adapt your style, according to long time DJ, Mark “The Guru” Brown. PHOTO: Joel Ontong
Important for the culture
“Yaadt DJs are incredibly influential and incredibly important. The kind of music does something unique for the culture that I think is uplifting,” claims Mia Arderne, a Cape Town-based writer.
Arderne wrote an article in 2020 titled “Yaadt music, a people’s expression” for New Frame. In this article she took an in-depth look into Yaadt music and spoke to various DJ’s, she says. “[Yaadt music] allows for a certain type of release that I think we really need as a society,” she continues.
Yaadt and DJing in general, can be a form of expression, according to Alexander. DJs tell ‘stories’ that speak to joy, pain and nostalgia through the songs they play and produce, she says. Here she references a famous Yaadt song ‘Net Liggies’ produced by Darryl Davids, also now known as DJ Lil D. The song tells a story through humour, she says.
“Everybody has their different opinions about Yaadt music. For me it’s expressing happiness,” says Daniels.
However, there is some controversy around the term “Yaadt”, says Arderne. “House DJs, in particular, are reluctant to call their music ‘Yaadt music’. There is almost this pejorative vibe to it,” she says.
Yaadt music is usually distributed through unofficial channels, according to Mia Arderne, a Cape Town-based writer. YouTube is one platform for distributing this type of music, where Yaadt DJ mixes receive hundreds of thousands of views. PHOTO: Joel Ontong
The other side of Yaadt
Despite its popularity in the Western Cape, most Yaadt songs are not on any official streaming services, according to Arderne. This is one of Yaadt’s biggest downfalls, claims Arderne.
Yaadt is distributed through platforms such as WhatsApp, YouTube or other social media applications, she says.
This is because the samples used in Yaadt music are seldom obtained legally or with the permission of the original artist, says Alexander.
Since the samples are not cleared for legal use and the music is disseminated through unconventional channels, Yaadt DJs lose out on making money from their creations, says Arderne.
But Yaadt may not always be about the money, she says. “It’s subverting capitalism almost, because it’s got nothing to do with making money. But the fact that these artists aren’t paid is a bit shit.”
Yaadt’s unofficial distribution does add to its uniqueness, believes Arderne. “It gets around without needing to be on anything official, and that’s quite special.”
Because “what they are doing is, so-to-speak, illegal”, Yaadt DJs are also largely ignored by the media, says Arderne. “Yaadt music, specifically the DJs, aren’t represented in the media at all.”
Through writing about these DJs, the media can give them the credit that they deserve, according to Alexander. “We are giving value to this genre and this feeling.”
Due to the internet and online streaming services, modern DJs have increased accessibility to songs, according to DJ, Mark “The Guru” Brown. Technology has also made it easier for DJs to be creative, he says. PHOTO: Joel Ontong
The evolution of Yaadt
Yaadt’s sound has developed since its early roots of putting tribal beats over popular songs, according to Alexander. DJs getting access to better equipment evolved the sound, she says.
“Technology has made it so much easier to be creative,” says Mark “The Guru” Brown, who has been DJing for more than 30 years. This phenomenon is not exclusive to the Yaadt sound, but applies to all forms of DJ production and even music at large, according to various DJs.
“You can have a laptop and speakers in your house and produce to the level that the biggest producers are doing,” says Phillip Jordaan, audio engineer and music technology lecturer at Stellenbosch University. “Technology has brought us to this generation where kids of 15, 16 years old can sit in their room and make amazing music,” says Jordaan.
Due to the internet and streaming services, the acquisition of music is much more accessible, says Brown.
“Back in the day we used to go to town with the money we earned from last night’s gig and buy like four records. Nowadays, you go to a party and you can have almost any song,” he explains.
The increased accessibility of music ties into Yaadt’s use of uncleared samples, since the music is always readily available through platforms like YouTube, according to various DJs.
I don’t know if anyone can make Yaadt music, but I think everyone should try if they want to
However, being a good DJ requires more than just having new technology. “A lot of people think, ‘Ag, DJing is so easy. You just press play’,” says Brown. But that is not the case.
Having a wide knowledge of different genres and individual songs are important traits of a good DJ, he says.
The most important thing for a DJ is to entertain their crowd and the ability to do that can transcend skill and equipment, according to Brown. “I mean at the end of the day, a DJ’s job is to rock a party and if you rock a party with whatever you have at your disposal then more power to you.”
DJs should be able to control and read their crowd, says Daniels. Versatility and the willingness to adapt to different audiences are also important, she says.
However, DJs should also educate their crowd, by exposing them to music they would not usually listen to, she says.
Those interested in DJing and specifically making Yaadt music, should not feel deterred by their lack of skills or equipment, according to Arderne. Little is needed to make Yaadt music and that is what makes it accessible, she adds .
“I don’t know if anyone can make Yaadt music, but I think everyone should try if they want to,” she says.
Any space can become a dancefloor through music, said Mandy Alexander, a writer and DJ based in Cape Town. Dancefloors can provide safe spaces for marginalized communities, giving them a chance to express themselves through music. VIDEO: Joel Ontong