In case you did not know, Native Young is playing at Park Acoustics in Pretoria this week Sunday. He’s an Independent pop artist and music is his medicine, his vehicle… it’s everything to him.

Native Young won the 2017 SAMA Award for Best Alternative Album. He hails from Cape Town and he lists Radiohead, Michael Jackson, Don Laka, Bjork, Bon Iver and Harari as his influence. I recently had a chat to him about a few things. This is what he had to say:

Where does the name “Native Young” come from?

I was standing outside our rehearsal space in Gugulethu when a bus drove past with ‘NY1’ on it’s display. I asked my marimba player Mark what that stood for and he replied ‘Native Yard’ – however I misheard and thought he said “Native Young”. When he corrected me I realised that “Native Young” was the perfect name for this project from a cultural and musical sound perspective.

What have you been up to lately?

Playing a lot of shows and making a bunch of new music (The dream)

Who would win a celebrity deathmatch between Justin Bieber and Bruno Mars and why?

Probably ol’ Beebs – he’s a determined little guy

What is your favorite quote about music?

“When you’re happy, you enjoy the music but when you’re sad, you understand the lyrics.” – Frank Ocean

If someone asks you to describe your music, what do you tell them?

Kasi Pop

What can music lovers expect from your set at Park Acoustics?

Only Love!

I’d like to thank Native Young for this interview and I wish him all of the best with this performance on Sunday and his future musical endeavors.

If you’re not familiar with his music, check out the music video for his song “Kings” below:

Watch this space for regular updates in the Music category on Running Wolf’s Rant.