FiNE x Lizwi – The Light (Extended Mix) + Interview
One of the songs that has been a fan favorite in the sets of South African duo FiNE over the past few months has been “The Light” with Lizwi. The progressive Afro house tune from the twin brothers that features the powerful lyrics of the African vocalist was released on MoBlack Records, the Italy based label started by MoBlack in 2013. Check out these videos of FiNE playing the song at La Mesa in Los Angeles and Ephimera in Tulum (watch the full set here)!
Now based in Los Angeles, Craig and Darren Fine have a monthly residency called FiNE Fridays at La Mesa and have also played at venues such as Hotel Shangri-La in Santa Monica, The Mondrian in West Hollywood, Aya Lounge in Beverly Hills, The Cooks Garden in Venice, and Caffe Roma in Venice.
Nokuphiwa Lizwi M Mbatha has previously worked with Themba on “Mountain High”, Ahmed Spins on “Waves & Wavs”, and DeMajor on “Traveller” (with the Kususa and QueTornik remix played by Black Coffee during his set for Cercle at Salle Wagram in Paris in 2018).
Read on for an interview with FiNE as they talk about how they got in touch with MoBlack, how they connected with Lizwi, upcoming artists to watch for, and more!
Hey FiNE! Appreciate your time today answering a few questions. How has your day been so far?
Our day is just getting started! It’s currently 6am and we’re in Amsterdam. We got into the Netherlands last night from Los Angeles and are about to spend 5 days doing Yacht Week in Croatia before returning to the Netherlands for some exciting shows and studio work.
How would you describe your sound in three animals, and why those animals?
We definitely have to go with a lion, a cheetah and a dolphin. A lion because it’s the king of the jungle, and stands out from the crowd. A cheetah because of its nimbleness and how it always moves with purpose. And a dolphin because it’s incredibly smart and always thinking 10 steps ahead, and innovating music and show wise is what we’re trying to do!
“The Light” is the title of your latest single with Lizwi released by MoBlack Records. How did you first get in touch with MoBlack and the imprint?
We came across MoBlack years ago as we watched Black Coffee and some of the original Afro artists rise through the industry. Lizwi actually did the introduction to MoBlack for us and we’re so humbled that they liked the track and were keen to release it.
How did you get connected with Lizwi and how long did it take for you guys to feel that it was ready to be put out?
We reached out to Lizwi via Instagram, sent her some unreleased tunes and told her we’d love to work with her. From the very beginning, she was super supportive and a pleasure to work with. We’ve already done 2 tracks together and she’s a phenomenal songwriter. For The Light, we sent her a track bed that took us probably 30 hours to make. Lizwi recorded the vocals and sent them back. We then tuned and comped them, put in approximately another 20 hours of work, and then we had the finished product.
Born in South Africa and having spent time in Botswana, Israel, and Australia, how have these locations influenced your career?
South Africa and Botswana is where we grew up, it’s where we first learned about Afro House, experienced Africa and all its beauty, learned our first instruments, etc. Israel is where we really got into electronic music, and started DJing in clubs for the first time. Australia is where our family lives, and it’s where we finished university. Australians have such a will to travel and live life, and the support from our friends to go pursue our career overseas has been amazing.
What can we expect from you in the second half of 2023?
We’ve got an exciting few months ahead! Being in Europe we are going to be working on a lot of new music, plus will be announcing a string of shows soon. At the end the year, we have a tour to South Africa, Bali, and Australia which we are super excited for!
Favorite song of 2023 so far?
Horizon Red – Made By Pete & Zoe Kypri and all the remixes.
Best track to play at peak time?
Our track Nomathemba, which is our 2nd track (unreleased) with Lizwi. It’s a really special track.
Producer(s) and/or vocalist(s) you’d most like to work with?
Producer wise we’d love to work with Keinemusik, those guys are epic! Vocalist wise, we’d love to work with AWEN.
Upcoming artist(s) to watch for in 2023?
We love what the Kreative Nativez boys are doing. We’re also watching Mpho.wav and Jnr SA, they’ve both put out some amazing songs with big collaborations recently. We’re excited for the new wave of Afro artists that seem to be coming through.
Take a listen to “The Light” below and give FiNE and Lizwi a follow!
FiNE – Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / SoundCloud
Lizwi – Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / SoundCloud