Ben September thanks TikTok, Prince Kaybee for his success

R&B and soul crooner, Ben September, who can melt any cold heart with his soothing and velvety voice, has accidentally found viral fame – thanks to his TikTok commentary.

“I was sitting in front of the calendar, and I said which month rhymes with Ben. I got to my birth month, which is May, and I said Ben May sounded too nice,” he said, explaining how he landed his stage name.

“Then I went to August, but there was already an August Alsina and when I got to September, it had a ring to it. The year was 2019.”

Born Thabiso Ben Morake in Sasolburg, Free State, the 27-year-old jazz fanatic started forging his music path during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. “At first, I just wanted to see if I could rap, but I soon realised that I just knew how to write poetry – I needed a medium to express this poetry. The type of music I wanted to do at first was rap but I soon realised it didn’t resonate with me because everyone was doing rap.”

Ben September soon made his music debut on Prince Kaybee’s smash hit, Breakfast In Soweto, featuring Mandlin Beams. Prince Kaybee reached out to him on social media after discovering his content. “Just close to five years ago, I was just posting videos of myself rapping and singing, I wasn’t letting people in on who I am, which I now do on TikTok. I was very shy and had little confidence,” he said.

“Prince Kaybee is one of my closest friends, I even consider him a role model. He was one of those musicians who sat me down and taught me the way he does music, and how he’d like me to learn from that. Even outside music, he still gives me wisdom about life.”

While their song became an instant hit, Ben September admits his career progression has been slow since then. But he remains committed to his craft. “I just used TikTok as a way to speak with people, the last thing I expected was to blow up, but I’m loving the engagement with my followers who love my commentary,” he said.

Away from the limelight, his biggest role model is his father. “My dad is the one I’d like to be as a man. We’re not the best of friends, not that we’re fighting, but I’m just like him, and I’ve learnt so much from his hard work and how he always shows up for those around him,” he said.

Ben September plans to drop a full-length album later in the year. “When I make music, I try to look for quality. I don’t always look at making a hit, I try to be honest when composing music. I’m big on collaborative work,” he said.

“I usually sit and think, can my mom listen to this song, can the kids listen to it? I always want to be proud of the work I’ve done when I’m in the studio. I know, I’ve been in the ‘game’ for some time, but my journey isn’t the same as the next person. We are all in the same water, just on different boats – and I understand if someone is meant to blow up now, it would be their time. It’s just a matter of when for me.”