Founded in 2015 by Fela Gucci and Desire Marea, Johannesburg-based duo FAKA’s work spans art, photography, and performance, but it’s for their music they’re best known. Fusing elements of traditional South African Zulu sound with innovative, pounding electronic beats, the pair also founded inclusive club night Cunty Power, and use their platform to amplify the voices of the country’s LGBTQ+ scene. Released in late 2018, Angel Ho-produced track “Queenie” saw the pair invite members of its queer community to discuss sexuality, gender, and identity: “Art’s ability to heal and create new realities is what drives us,” they explain.
It’s not only in music that FAKA are making waves, though. Over the course of the last year, Gucci and Marea have had an impact on the fashion landscape: providing the soundtrack (and sitting front row) at Donatella Versace’s AW19 menswear show, and collaborating with Telfar on brilliantly visceral, immersive performances at both London’s Serpentine Gallery and at New York Fashion Week.
Driving them forward right now is their debut album, due out in late 2019, as well as plans for new shows and projects. “We’re so thankful for our constant evolution,” they say. “Every moment spent doing what we do is special.”
Emma Elizabeth Davidson