Charlie Kay ropes in Cassper Nyovest and Gemma Griffiths for “Solo”
UK based Zimbabwean singer/songwriter and producer Charlie Kay joined forces with fellow Zimbabwean songbird Gemma Griffiths and South African powerhouse Cassper Nyovest to deliver the infectious Afropop-infused banger “Solo”.
The video for “Solo” was shot in London and directed by Lutch Media (Davido, LAX), the team behind the GRM Daily Duppy series and reveals a stellar cast of influencers from the Southern African music scene.
Charlie, who is based in Birmingham, has worked to steadily build an excellent reputation producing for some of Zimbabwe’s best talents like Ammara Brown, Tamy Moyo and Jah Prayzah.
Additionally, he takes executive producer credits for his friend and cohort – Gemma Griffths on her two EP’s ‘Pamwe’ and ‘A Girl From Harare’ as well as ex Noisettes frontwoman Shingai on her album ‘Too Bold’. Now though, his attention is much broader.
Having established his boutique independent label, ‘Inkredible Muzik’, he has worn the Label Executive hat signing projects like “Connecting The Dots” by Ghana’s Smallgod (which featured the likes of Headie One, NSG, KiDi, Darkoo, Blacksheriff and lots more) as well as “Oxford Street” a project by Synpa with the like of Ms Banks, Kwesi Arthur, Kida Kudz, Guilty Beats and many more.
Solo’ is the first instalment to be released from his own forthcoming debut project “The Prelude” and will serve to solidify Charlie Kay as one of Zimbabwe’s most multifaceted exports.
Speaking on this bold new single he says, “Growing up I listened to a huge mix from reggae, hip hop, dancehall as well as a genre from home called Sangura, which has these crazy guitar riffs. With Solo I think I wanted to experiment with what I could do with all of this.”
“Solo signifies a new chapter in my journey. I am surrounded by an amazing group of people who continue to elevate me,’ he says.
Speaking on the collab he says, “I have always been a fan of Cassper so when we were in the studio together vibing, l played him the demo that I had with Gemma on the hook. When Cassper heard the track, it didn’t take him long to jump in the booth and lay down a verse – the rest was history.”
This multi-faceted exec continues to grow as an artist in his own right. The astounding new single, ‘Solo’ provides an exciting beginning to this fresh new era for Charlie.
