IN celebrating 18 years of success, gospel group Nkosana and Stocks and Stocks has just released a smash hit album, Sedi Laka.

Formed by Nkosana Kodi in 1993, the ZCC mkhukhu group spreads the word of God through music. The album is made up of hymns and traditional songs.

"When composing a song I use the Bible as inspiration. I pick a verse and create a song out of it. Some of my songs come to me as dreams," Kodi explains.

He says the group's latest album offers a message of hope, especially to the youth.

"The music in the album gives hope to those who are jobless and do not know where to go. What I am saying to them is that everything has its own time."

Kodi, who owns five other gospel groups, says his group's music has evolved over the years. He says they have moved away from the slower mkhukhu style and introduced faster tempos in their recordings, adapting ZCC hymns as well as choruses to their repertoire.

"Looking back to where we started, our sound has developed. When we started our sound had instruments. We even experimented and tried a cappella. But in the new album we have reverted to recording our original a cappella style of singing. Our music has a strong message and teachings that help a lot of people."

Born in Thembisa, Kodi grew up in Winterveldt, north of Pretoria, where his passion for music began.

Listening to groups such as The Rustenburg Boys Choir, Chaneng, 7 Rocks, and The Tembisa Rock Messengers, inspired him to become a singer.

"When I was growing up in the 1980s I used to listen to those old ZCC groups. I joined various choirs before going solo. These groups recorded ZCC choruses that they performed as worshippers."