2oceans Vibe

Ninja says Americans have taken to the South African zef rappers like ducks to water. He has also said “God made a mistake with me,” and that he is “actually black, trapped in a white body.” Ninja understands that culture traverses colour, and many other things.

After recently being recognised for their choice of style as the faces for Alexander Wang’s new T line, Die Antwoord even appear on huge billboards in New York these days, not just Kloof Street.

The duo enjoyed front row seats at New York Fashion Week on the weekend too.

Ninja has decided to talk a bit about how he feels about all of this:

The people are going fucking crazy. They tattoo themselves like us, they dress like us and they cut their hair like ours. And all the Americans rap in Afrikaans. It’s crazy.

We rebel against all brain-dead, soulless music. People started saying Afrikaans is dead. Now we’re massive all over the world, millions of kids rap along in Afrikaans. If that’s a bad thing, don’t listen. Apartheid was a Afrikaans thing and it was bad; now we’re flipping that shit.

God made a mistake with me. I’m actually black, trapped in a white body. South Africa has 11 languages, different cultures, I don’t feel we’re separate. Die Antwoord is like South Africa, all these cultures in one fucking person.

Ninja went on to speak a bit about their South African influences:

Coloured rappers like Scallywag, Isaac Mutant and Jaak Paarl. Snotkop is a dud. I don’t know Karen Zoid’s music. Kurt Darren is actually a fucking treasure, he’s our tjommie. I like Kurt’s shit, the rest is just irrelevant.

And to critics that say he’s sold out?

I’ve always been looking for my true self. And Ninja is it. I’ve always experimented with different characters. I searched deep within for the real me. Ninja is what I’ve always wanted to be. Hardcore, indestructible. My mom and my daughter call me Ninja.

There’s no denying that Ninja culture is growing.

[Source: Beeld]