Skate Tracks: The Collision of Music and Skateboarding in Joburg

Twenty One Children: Modern Jozi skate punk rockers personified. Photo courtesy Richard Dick Smith.
From Soweto to Linden, the noise of the skateboarding is loud. And we’re not just talking about the satisfying sound of wheels rolling on concrete.
In the City of Gold, music and skateboarding have long been each other’s muses, feeding off one another to produce some of the most influential musicians and skateboarders ever to come out of South Africa.
blunt delves into the enigmatic intersection of alt music and skateboarding in Joburg to unpack the collision of these two vibrant subcultures (be sure to read to the end to find out how you can book a free ticket to an upcoming skate music event in Joburg).
Words by Carmen Gee. Photos by Richard Dick Smith and the blunt files.
Rocking Out in the 90s and 00s
Although you could peer much further back in time if you wanted to, the late 90s and early 00s are a great starting point when discussing the crossover of skateboarding and music in Jozi and how the two subcultures have always inspired each other.
“Before I joined Fuzigish, I was in a band called The Dixons and we played at amazing underground shows put on by Vans and Skates For Africa. There were always ramps at the shows,” says Malcolm King, bassist from Fuzigish, one of the most iconic Jozi punk-ska bands, with firm roots in the skate scene.
“Both skating and punk are very fun, super fast, dangerous, accessible, expressive, therapeutic, stylish and physically demanding outlets that one needs to get around in doomy old Jozi.” – Abdula Skink, frontman, Twenty One Children, Soweto skate punk rockers.
Joburg punk and rock bands, and bands from the greater Gauteng area took their inspiration from the OG California skate punk bands era, with Mzsanzi flavour, outfits like Leek, ATFN, Rim3, The Slashdogs, The Vendettas, Shifty, Evil Eddies, 16 Stitch, Plum, Seed and even Tweak and others were always firm fixtures at skate events and part of the fabric of Jozi skate culture.

Evil Eddies. OG skate punk mofos circa early noughts. Photo blunt archive.
Although Fokofpolisiekar originated in Belville, the band has played dozens of gigs in Jozi over the years and also boasted a massive fan base in the skateboarding scene. So much so that the Afrikaans rock band garnered international appeal and eventually collaborated with Verb Skateboards on a line of skate decks, as did Fuzigish.
Fokofpolisiekar weren’t the only Afrikaans bands popular with skaters in the 00s. Other contenders include Die Antwoord, Jack Parrow, and Die Heuwals Fantasties.
The 10’s Welcome Amapiano
The experimental sound of Amapiano originated in the townships of Gauteng in the 2010s, with many emerging and established artists incorporating continuous keys into their music. Local skaters of all ages have wholeheartedly embraced the genre, but it’s not just South Africans who are taking notice.
Cory Kennedy and Shane O’Neil, skaters from America and Australia respectively, released an Amapiano skate edit to the popular track, ‘Woza’ by Kabza De Small, Lady Du, and Mr JazziQ. The genre’s global popularity can also be attributed to Instagram and TikTok, with dance challenges to Amapiano tracks going viral.
New Kids
Joburg’s underground music scene is alive at the moment and it feels as though there’s an unmissable event almost every weekend.
In the words of Thulasizwe Nkosi, who plays guitar for Twenty One Children, a local skate rock band from Soweto, “the scene is healthier than a zebra right now”.
“I grew up with skateboarding and graffiti, street culture basically. I always watched my role models and thought, ‘Man I wanna do that one day.’” – Triz, OG Jozi rocker and skater.
The sheer number of alt musicians coming out of Joburg should also be noted, such as Mean Girls and especially out of Soweto, such as TCIYF, Triz, and Shameless to name just a few. Triz, vocalist for 11th Hour and co-founder of the SA Metal Music Awards, tells blunt, “I grew up with skateboarding and graffiti, street culture basically. I always watched my role models and thought, ‘Man I wanna do that one day.’”

Shameless. Soweto’s finest.
Twenty One Children was recently labelled as ‘the return of true Jozi punk’ by Front Row Media. When asked about the overlap of skate and punk, frontman Abdula Skink had this to say, “Both skating and punk are very fun, super fast, dangerous, accessible, expressive, therapeutic, stylish and physically demanding outlets that one needs to get around in doomy old Jozi.”
“Soweto kids have always had a pioneering spirit from the get-go. Most urban sub-cultures start out in Soweto and then eventually spread out into the entire country. Like Kwaito, Amapiano and Pantsula. There’s always been a sense of rebellion and ingenuity spirit going through the Soweto Youth,” says Thulasizwe.
Some of the other current SA musical talents making waves in the Jozi skate scene include Internet Girl and Easy Freak. The list goes on!

Internet Girl Rocking the Daisies 2023.
It’s Not all Punk and Rock ‘n Roll
Skateboarding has historically been more associated with ska, punk, and rock, but hip hop has also always played a massive role in Jozi street culture.
The link between the two is as solid as punk rock. Prolific professional skateboarder, Khule Ngubane, is also an upcoming rapper who goes by the name KoolAir. His single ‘Let it play’ was released in 2022 and he plans to release an album later this year.
“When you think of skating and hip-hop, you immediately think of America. But South Africa is different as most of our hip-hop has its roots in Kwaito and house music,” explains Khule. Another huge name in the local hip hop scene is DJ Speedsta, who balances his time between producing music and running his skate store and indoor skate park in Melville.
So What’s Next?
So what’s next for the Jozi skate and music scene? We don’t think there’s any need to worry about the scene dying out. It seems to be getting bigger and better, building on a long history of unique creativity generated when its skate and music scenes collide.
“The Jozi kids are restless and boredom is a big “No”,” says Skink from Twenty One Children. “From this, we can determine that there will be plenty of big gigs and epic skate events to come.”

Twenty One Children are going to be punking out Soweto-style at a noisy skate music event in Jozi very soon – see below for more details on how you can book your free ticket.
Experience the collision of Jozi’s skate and music scenes for yourself at Skate Noise JHB on July 27
If you’d like to experience the epic collision of Jozi’s vibrant skate and music scene for yourself, head down to 1 Fox in Johannesburg on the 27th of July 2024. Not only will Skate Noise JHB be a rocking skate event, but there’ll also be electrifying music provided by several local skateboarding-inspired bands and artists. And entry is free, all you have to do is book your ticket at the link below. Come see what all the hype is about.
Find out more:
www.quicket.co.za/events/269481-spotify-presents-skate-noise-joburg/?ref=events-list#/