South African R&B artist, ThandoNje released her much anticipated album on the 22nd of April 2022. The 12-track project titled "stillness" features 3 South African artists, and a surprise international feature from the United States.
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| Stillness album cover (Picture credits: ThandoNje Instagram) |
By: Avuyile Sawula
When you hear the words R&B and South Africa in the same sentence, I’m pretty sure you immediately think of our international treasure, Elaine. Now don’t get me wrong, we have quite a lot of R&B artists in South Ahh. However, “young R&B artists” who resonate and relate to the “new generation” are pretty scarce.
In a piece written by Naledi de Wee in 2020, which focused on “R&B stars to look out for in SA” ThandoNje was featured at number 4. This came after her second studio album, Frequency took the industry by “storm” in 2020, making everyone realize the talents she possessed.
[To watch an explanation of the name "ThandoNje" - click on this link]
Thando started her career by releasing cover songs on social media. She quickly blew up and, according to her realised that “writing her own music was the way to go”. The Pretoria born star has since released 3 albums, with Stillness (which we’ll be reviewing today) being the latest. 
ThandoNje recording a cover song. (Picture credit: Style ID Africa).
STILLNESS:
The saying “good things are worth waiting for," resonates with this album. A mate of mine even went as far as labelling it “SERIOUS R&B”. Going two years without releasing an album and coming back with such an amazing body of work is what I’m sure any fan base would accept.
The first song in the album is titled Grateful “Amazing”. Sounds cliché right? However, it’s a beautiful song that expresses gratitude and simply reminds us of how “amazing” the Lord is. It’s certainly a good choice for an opening song, as it sets the tone of what the album sounds like.
The tracks that follow certainly live up to the expectations. They take one through a journey of “finding themselves, creating a root for a world of stillness." One of my favourites, Searching (Track 2), is an example of this.
There’s certainly a level of maturity in this project. You can tell that Thando is singing about things she’s been through, sharing her life lessons, and offering comfort in every track. Self-introspection, self-love, and gratitude are also famous themes in this album, and this can be picked up in all the songs.
Thando explains that the album is “a journey that will take you to a place of understanding that throughout life, love is everything." This is true because songs like “Never Alone, Love is Everything, and The day” relay this message and complete the masterpiece. I could go all day but to fully understand the message of the album, one needs to experience it themselves.
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| Picture by: ThandoNje's Instagram page. |
Thando features 4 artists in this album, as mentioned above. She features brothers, Jay Jody and A-Reece, Jah Level, and American musician Stephen Richard. All of whom added an extra element to the sound and ultimately drove the album in the right direction.
The album is produced by jazz musicians Saul Madiope and Morongwa and is released under the record label Dream.Believe.Do.Records (PTY) LTD.
The album is currently sitting at number 3 in the R&B/Soul charts.
I would highly recommend listening to this album. Spiritually, it moved me.
I felt a sense of contentment and was reminded that no matter what life throws at you, you’re never alone. Always Be grateful. When feeling lost, always search for yourself, take it slow, and enjoy the pain because it doesn’t last forever. Love is everything, and everything is love.
& Always remember, we’ve been blessed to see another day.
The album is available on all streaming platforms (Just click on the link below). Enjoy & let me know how it goes.