TDK MACASSETTE aka The Gqom Barbie, is one of Gqom’s most colourful and vibrant entertainers who has given us hits like Domoroza, which caused havoc in the streets, and Zama featuring OKMalumKoolkat.
Young, smart, beautiful and vibrant. This is no ordinary Gqom singer nor is she just a talented dancer. Her personality is made of Gold, her vision is pure vibranium and her journey is just beginning. She’s here to redefine the game as we know it, she abides by her own rules and her eyes are set on far more than just music.
TDK has also just graduated from the Durban University of Technology with a PR & Communications diploma, which she will use as she owns a Communication Management company.
Gqom barbie, TDK MACASSETTE, is back with her latest hit single ‘Left, Right’. The song is a vibrant, hard hitting anthem. Known for her high energy performances, ‘Left, Right’ has an infectious beat with catchy vocals and dreamy synths which make this single an undeniably great follow up from her previous works. TDK seamlessly continues to promote the Gqom sound by giving us something to sing along and dance to. ‘Left, Right’ is the second single from her forthcoming EP, which promises to cover every aspect of dance music.
Kas’lam got to chill with this hit maker who has firmly established herself as the Gqom Barbie and no one can dare dispute that.
Which Kasi do you come from and how was it like growing up there? My family comes from uMlazi but I grew up in Woodlands. I grew up in a loving home and dance has always been the order of the day where I’m from.
The name Macassette, how did it come about? I used to dance in school so I figured Thandeka was too long I then shortened it to TDK so it sounds cool when they announce me to come on stage. Macassette came from my friends, they used to come with me to gigs and would hype me up. They figured, a “black” name would be catchier for the crowd, as opposed to an English name because the majority of black people are more receptive to African names than they are to western names.
You’ve been in this industry for a while now, you started off being a teenage radio host then had a career in dancing and now you’re in music, how has the transitions of your journey been? Radio will always be my passion, dancing was just a thing I just did in school, I did drama at school which influenced my dancing interest but radio has always been my first love.
I feel like this is a good combination because all my careers complement one another, with music, I took a chance and it worked out for me, fortunately enough. It was through one song with DJ Maphorisa after linking up with him through the corporate work that we did together. He played me a few of his beats and me being a chancer, I shot my shot and that’s how “Goosheshe Somnika” came about which launched my music career.
Now you had a single out, “Domoroza” that did so well with exciting visuals, what would you say inspired the track?
The track is actually quite old, it was recorded last year in 2017 and I only released it right now after being signed. The song has been in existent for a while now and after picking up this new trend where everybody is talking about “domorozing” which is a slang term, I got inspired to fuse the trend with my track.
Now, should we expect an album? Absolutely, I’m releasing my album in 2019 which has about 10-12 tracks but will definitely release a new single which you should look out for it, it’s going to be an absolute scorcher.
