Revolution is a

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air c ...

band formed in

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and Xhosa language, Xhosa: eGoli ) (colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, Jo'burg or "The City of Gold") is the most populous city in South Africa. With 5,538,596 people in the City of Johannesburg alon ...

, South Africa, consisting of twin brothers George and Joseph Mothiba. They emerged into the spotlight with the release of their third album ''The Journey'' in 2002, supported by the hit single ''Vhavenda'', it was recognised as the Best Selling Release at the 2003

South African Music Awards The South African Music Awards (often simply the SAMAs) are the Recording Industry of South Africa's music industry awards, established in 1995. The ceremony is held annually, usually in late April or May, with the judging process starting in ...

. Since then, they have released a further twelve albums at a rate of close to one per year, achieving some degree of commercial and critical success.

Career

Early life and career

George and Joseph Mothiba were born in

Alexandra Alexandra () is a female given name of Greek origin. It is the first attested form of its variants, including Alexander (, ). Etymology, Etymologically, the name is a compound of the Greek verb (; meaning 'to defend') and (; genitive, GEN , ; ...

township A township is a form of human settlement or administrative subdivision. Its exact definition varies among countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, this tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, Canad ...

, South Africa. They also have two elder sisters and describe their family, which is said to have

Limpopo Limpopo () is the northernmost Provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa. It is named after the Limpopo River, which forms the province's western and northern borders. The term Limpopo is derived from Rivombo (Livombo/Lebombo), a ...

roots, as "simple". The brothers first started dabbling in music at the age of 17. Initially they experimented with computers, "playing around" with sounds and pursuing DJing as a hobby. They would take their uncle's radio cassettes whilst washing his car then play them at friends parties. At one such party they met Big Oscar (better known as

Oskido Oscar Sibonginkosi Mdlongwa (born 29 November 1967) is a South African recording artist, DJ, record producer and businessman. Having been in the music industry for over 26 years, Oskido has reached a prominent status in the South African mus ...

), a more established DJ. They went up to him for advice on DJing as he was able to mix with vinyls instead of tapes, they casually frequented him for a year and half afterwards. While searching for vinyls to mix with, they met DJ Christos as he owned one of the few record shops selling vinyls. Impressed by their interest in music and seeing them regularly come by his shop he asked them to open for him when going on gigs. Having been introduced to the world of professional music in 1999, Revolution released their first album in 2000.

2002–2004: Breakthrough success

Their 2002 remix of guitar player Phillip Tabane's song ''Vhavenda'' started on the wrong note. They had used their mother's vinyls to craft the song without asking for Tabane's permission, he at first threatened to sue them but allegedly relented after listening to – and appreciating – the song. This bluster ultimately proved successful as the song, and its accompanying album ''The Journey'', introduced them to a wider public, it reportedly went

double platinum Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music Sound recording and reproduction, recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video ...

within three months of its launch, ultimately selling over 400,000 copies. It also earned the group awards such as the

Metro FM Metro FM is a national commercial radio station in South Africa owned by the South African Broadcasting Corporation. The station broadcasts on FM Stereo as well as the DStv Bouquet Channel 801. Telephone : History The station started broad ...

award for Best Club DJ, and the

(Sama) award for Best Selling Release. The brothers released ''The Journey Continues'', their fourth album (after ''The Journey'' and their previous releases ''Revolution 1'' and ''Revolution 2''), in September 2003. Featuring popular tracks such as ''Zim Connection'', a collaboration with Zimbabwean jazz musician Andy Brown, it also went double platinum, selling more than 100,000 copies by February 2004. It would garner them further acclaim, including another

award for Best Club DJ in 2004, and another Sama the same year, this time for Best Dance Album.

2004–2009: Fifth album and further recognition

''Another Level'', their fifth album, which was released in 2004, saw the DJ's team up with a number of collaborators including Jazz stalwarts McCoy Mrubata,

Pops Mohammed Pops may refer to: Name or nickname * Pops, an informal term of address for a father or elder * Pops (nickname), a list of people * Pops (Muppet), a Muppets character * Pops (Johnny Bravo), a character from the Cartoon Network animated television ...

and

Jimmy Dludlu Jimmy Dludlu (born 17 November 1966) is a Mozambican jazz musician. Early life Dudludlu grew up in Mozambique, South Africa ,Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe and started playing guitar at 13 years old when he taught himself with a homemade guitar. ...

to create a fusion of house and Jazz that made the latter more accessible to young fans The album proved another commercial success, going over triple-platinum in units sold, whilst it also brought Revolution four nominations for the 2005 Sama's; Best Dance Album, Artist of the Year, Song of the Year (for ''The Anthem'') and Best Group or Duo, winning the latter. For 2005 album ''Roots'' the duo enlisted the services of actress (notably appearing in Muvhango) and singer Maduvha, who they also signed to their record label Four Sounds Productions, penning the song ''Light of My Life''. It was nominated for Best Popular Song of the Year at the 2006 Sama's while Revolution received their second successive nomination for Best Duo or Group though they didn't win either. Revolution's 2006 album ''4 u'' contained ''Feel the Music'', a collaboration with former

Boom Shaka Boom Shaka was a pioneering South African kwaito music group consisting of Junior Sokhela, Lebo Mathosa, Theo Nhlengethwa and Thembi Seete. They released their first single "It's About Time" in 1993, and subsequently released their debut LP, ...

member Theo Nhlengethwa who also signed up to their label, releasing the album ''Ngiyabonga'', written and produced by the Mothiba brothers, in 2007. Later in 2007, Revolution were again nominated for a Sama award, for Best Urban Dance Album, while their protégée Maduvha's eponymous album (also produced by them) received a nod for Best Female Artist though they both lost. ''The Book of Revolution'', their ninth album came out in 2008 (''Fusion'' was released the year before). Featuring eclectic partnerships with artists such as

Antonio Lyons Antonio is a masculine given name of Etruscan origin deriving from the root name Antonius. It is a common name among Romance language–speaking populations as well as the Balkans and Lusophone Africa. It has been among the top 400 most popular m ...

and

Don Laka Donald Mahwetša Laka (born 15 December 1958 in Mamelodi Mamelodi is a township northeast of Pretoria, Gauteng, South Africa. A part of the City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality, it was set up by the then apartheid government in 1953. ...

it was described as a "proudly Pan African fruit cocktail of stunning soul vocals, kwaai jazz grooves, glorious gospel anthems, fly slam poetic raps, and authentic

maskandi Maskandi (also Maskanda) is a form of Zulu music, Zulu folk music, originally associated with migrant workers,

2009–2015

Revolution celebrated a decade of musical activity in 2009 with the release of ''Revolution 10'', a double disk release with side one containing new songs such as ''Without You'' featuring Daddy and side two a compilation of their previous hits. Containing the song ''Iggys House'' (with Antonio Lyons), they dedicated the album to the late Iggy Smallz, a DJ who they counted as a friend. An eleventh album, ''Tribal Journey'', was released in 2010, featuring vocals from the likes of former Joyous Celebration gospel singer Thabo Mdluli and Senegalese singer

Moh Dediouf Moh ( Punjabi: ਮੋਹ ''mōha''; Sanskrit: ''muh'') is a word in Punjabi and Sanskrit which describes attachment to worldly possessions or individuals. It is one of the five thieves within Sikh philosophy which hinder one's spiritual devel ...

, it was described as "an uplifting tribute to the rich and complex web of musical expression which binds all Africans across the globe". Continuing on this "experimental tribal house" theme as labelled by a critic, the duo's next offering ''Meropa'' came out in 2011. Led by the popular single ''Teka Munike'' – a Portuguese language song with Rubygold – and producing credits ranging from Jazz great

Themba Mkhize Themba Mkhize is a South African jazz pianist and composer. Born in KwaZulu Natal, Mkhizehas played with South African bands including Bayethe and Sakhile. Early years Mkhize's interest in music was sparked at an early age. Over the years he has ...

to car mechanic Randy it was well received by critics. ''Evolution'', their twelfth album in as many years, came out in 2012. Featuring rising stars such as

Donald Donald is a Scottish masculine given name. It is derived from the Gaelic name ''Dòmhnall''.. This comes from the Proto-Celtic *''Dumno-ualos'' ("world-ruler" or "world-wielder"). The final -''d'' in ''Donald'' is partly derived from a misinter ...

and Moneoa, it reintroduced them to award recognition, earning them two (ultimately unfruitful) nominations at the 2013 Metro FM awards (for Best Dance Album and Best Group Album). The following year, in 2013, the brothers released a follow-up album, ''Evolution Delux'', stating that "the idea behind this album is to take you around the world from

Lana Del Rey Elizabeth Woolridge Grant (born June 21, 1985), known professionally as Lana Del Rey, is an American singer-songwriter. Lana Del Rey discography, Her music is noted for its melancholic exploration of Glamour (presentation), glamor and Romanc ...

to Nigeria" as it ranged from a

tribal The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide use of the term in English is in the discipline of anthropology. The definition is contested, in part due to conflict ...

remix of Del Rey's '' Young and Beautiful'' to the song ''Jola'' with Senegalese singer Ndeye in the scarcely spoken

Jola language Jola (Joola) or Diola is a dialect continuum spoken in Senegal, the Gambia, and Guinea-Bissau. It belongs to the Bak branch of the Niger–Congo language family. Name The name ''Jola'' is an exonym, and may be from the Mandinka word ''joolaa' ...

. Their song ''Noqatiko'', produced in partnership with fellow house producers Black Motion and singer Yasira, received a nomination for Best collaboration at the 2014 Metro FM awards.

2015–present

Revolution reached the 15 album mark with the release of ''Moribo'' in 2015, the title comes from the

Northern Sotho Sepedi, also known as Northern Sotho, is one of South Africa’s twelve official languages and belongs to the Bantu language family, specifically the Sotho-Tswana group. The language is spoken mainly in Limpopo Province, and to a lesser exten ...

word for rhythm. it contains features from a diverse array of musicians from the late Andy Brown and Kelly Petlane (both of whom they had worked with previously) to "newer artists" like Msaki on the single ''Springtide''. Critics described Moribo as "a soulful, remarkable and eclectic album" with a "strong ��African touch", with the group claiming to have produced an album that "caters for all markets and age groups".

Personal lives

Identical twins, the Mothiba brothers claim to be "alike in every way" and to enjoy the same things such as technology and music, conversely neither of them smokes or drinks. Furthermore, they also see themselves as best friends who are always together, as of November 2009 they were living together. In contrast to others in the South African musical scene they keep a low profile, with Joseph saying that "being all over the place, trying to impress people does more harm than good". They credit entertainment figures such as Ghetto Ruff founder Lance Stehr or Selimathunzi producer Baby Joe for instilling in them the notion that their "industry is not about the glitz and the glamour" but rather culture and specially South African music.

Approach to music making

The name Revolution was chosen after lengthy brainstorming, with the idea that they "were going to do different music". They name artists such as Jimmy Dludlu,

Oliver Mtukudzi Oliver "Tuku" Mtukudzi (22 September 1952 – 23 January 2019) was a Zimbabwe, Zimbabwean musician, businessman, philanthropist, Human rights activists, human rights activist and List of UNICEF Goodwill Ambassadors, UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador f ...

and Jay Hlungwani as influences, adding "if the music is good and the artist or DJ is good we will get inspiration from that" whatever the genre. On a similar note, they have worked with a number of musicians from other African countries to create "an African sound" in a slew of languages, claiming they "don't care about the languages they sing in, because the music will still be captured". Owning both their own recording studio and company (Four Sounds Productions), they have complete artistic control over their output, producing all their songs and managing themselves, and also owning their own video production equipment and company for their music videos. They call reconciling both aspects "difficult" as their artistic side strives to write the perfect song whilst their business side wants them to release the track quicker and use less instruments. To explain their staying power, they point out to their "distinct support base who follow our music all the time", and whose feedback they take on board to craft their sound. This strong fan base declaredly allows them to avoid rushing for commercial success and experiment with different sounds. Similarly, this connection to the mainstream public is said to help them "keep in touch, as does deejaying around the SADC region" which means they are able to notice recent trends before the rest of the industry catches up.

Discography

Albums

Awards and nominations

References

External links

Discography at Discogs.com
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