Before she became a world-renowned South African DJ, Uncle Waffles was just a teenager going by the name Lungelihle Zwane who knew she would be in some sort of creative field, but not necessarily music. Little did young Zwane, who was working at a broadcasting company and studying business management know that she’d one dat be an overnight sensation.
Uncle Waffles sat down with The Root to talk about her life before and after becoming the Princess of Amapiano. So, who is she?
One evening in October 2021, Waffles took over a performance slot when the intended DJ wasn’t able to show up. At that time, she only had minimal exposure to deejaying, but spent much of the pandemic honing her craft, posting mixes online, and practicing daily for hours. She said, “Pre-viral Uncle was someone who was going to venues and going to clubs and asking for 10 minutes to just do a little small set.”
Since she wasn’t sure when she would get the opportunity to perform in front of a full venue again, she put her all into her time on stage,
“It came very naturally, but the first video I wanted to stand out. So initially, I’m coming to fill up a set for someone who is already quite known. So I knew that I wasn’t gonna stand out. So I was like, OK, I need to find a way to make sure I stand out from the very first song I played to the last song I played. I was sweating and dancing, making sure that people recognize me.”
A clip of her dancing went viral and now she receives nods of approval from Drake, Ciara, and one of her favorite artists Beyoncé, who used a clip of her song “Tanzania” on the Renaissance World Tour.
Today at age 23, she’s been named the Princess of Amapiano, a genre originating from South Africa known for a jazzy, house music feel. She’s proven that a DJ can be known for more than just putting together great music, but also for being a bonafide performer.“I think that’s something that a lot of people know me for not only just performance but also for showing that DJs especially in the Amapiano genre can headline…even though I’m just behind the decks, I can still headline your show,’’ she said. And headlining is exactly what she’d been doing, tackling the 2023 Coachella stage as the first Amapiano genre act in the festival’s history.
Going viral hasn’t only happened once in Waffles’ career but rather happens consistently. One of the young DJ’s songs “Yahyuppiyah” has nearly two million videos. Having people on Tiktok create entire dance routines with it, she said is an occurrence that she never expected to happen while creating her addicting tunes. “I’m grateful that the people are starting to understand and engage with the sound. Yes, it’s still a little hard because what’s popular is still the TikTok versions of songs, not the actual songs that we know in the streets, but you know, it’s getting there slowly but shortly.”