Takala Zwino reunites Black Motion's Smol and Mörda

Black Motion’s Smol has hinted that he and former group member Mörda are now in a good place after a rocky two-year public spat – their reunion sees the release of their collaboration song, Takala Zwino, which is an ode to friendship. 

Real name Roy Thabo Mabogwane, Smol and his former group member Mörda formally known as Murdah Bongz, were the founding members of the popular Afro-house group that hit stardom in 2010. 

After 12 years as a unit, that produced hits like Rainbow, iMali and Joy Joy, Mörda, whose real name is Bongani Mohosana – husband to DJ Zinhle – chose to leave the established two-man group [in 2022] to rebrand and pursue a career as a solo artist in the local and international music industry. 

This left Smol in a compromising and confusing position on whether he too should explore his chances as a solo drummer – a move he told Sowetan SMag that he was hesitant to take. 

“I don’t want to lie, that phase was a very weird time for me. It’s inexplicable actually because we were just fresh from the pandemic and I thought we were trying to rebuild from the time lost under lockdown,” said the 38-year-old musician. “Then you find out that you’re not going to rebuild but instead you’d be starting from scratch.

“[Looking back], I’m glad that phase happened because it put me in a space where I had to ask myself what I wanted as a musician and one half of a household musical band.”

Smol expressed there was a great deal to consider regarding his next move, most of which were the group’s fans. Some he claims got married to the catalogue of their smash hits. 

“Some of our supporters met at our shows years ago and are now a family – these people have put their lives in our hands as musicians, so I had no choice but to consider them when it came to keeping and sustaining the brand Black Motion,” said the drummer from Soshanguve, north of Pretoria. 

“I also look at music groups such as Ladysmith Black Mambazo who have been in existence for over 40 years… there’s no way they didn’t have problems or others wanting to leave the group. So, during that time, I looked for solutions more than anything else.”

The much-anticipated song, which drops on May 10, also features Afrikan Roots and Deejay Buckz. 

“Takala Zwino is about savouring the good times with good friends. That nothing else matters but the present moment with your inner people or bloodline. It means that through anything, we will make it… despite what we go through, my day one is still my day one,” he said. 

“I was playing live [online] a couple of months ago sharing this new song; this sparked interest from Afrikan Roots, and Buckz said he too would like to hop on. Somehow our live session was shared on the Tsa ko Pitori Instagram page of us in the studio which Mörda saw… he then asked to join in the song. I saw no issue and I agreed mainly because I knew the joy it’d bring to people. 

“Making beautiful music is the only way we could prove to people that things are okay between us. We just want them to vibe with us like the good old times.”

As Smol chose to keep the legacy of the brand by adding Kabelo “Problem Child” Koma, he explained how thrilled he was to have the “godfather of house music and the first to do it from Limpopo” as a group member, and someone whose music he and Mörda used to perform when they first started out 14 years ago.

“Problem Child has always inspired Black Motion… from day one. When we started out in 2010, we used to play music produced by Kabelo,” he said. “What a lot of people don’t know is that Problem Child was the first DJ to come out of Limpopo. He helped teach the likes of Da Capo how to DJ. 

“When we introduced that he’d be joining Black Motion, Julius Malema was super happy that he [Problem Child] was finally getting his shine after the industry tried to shut him out."

“Everyone is saying, ‘Finally, Kabelo is where he belongs’”. 

While the aim is to keep making emotive and spiritually awakening music with his new band member, Smol also leads a cause through his foundation that sees children from disadvantaged communities being gifted with indigenous musical instruments.

“I just want to give these young aspiring musicians something to look forward to. One of our goals is to open an indigenous African music school where we will unearth the next Black Motion.

“We are also in need of more indigenous musical instruments as a part of our 1,000 Moropa Challenge. We will be collecting all these instruments from all nine provinces ...that will be distributed to orphanages and art galleries.”