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RNBSOULSA Top 30: Best South African R&B
30 songs. 30 artists. One playlist you need to hear.
South African R&B is having a moment, not because it just appeared, but because more artists than ever are creating, experimenting, and finding new ways to tell their stories through sound. The RNBSOULSA Top 30 is a journey through the sounds shaping the country’s current R&B landscape, heartbreak, love, confidence, late night records and songs you’ll want to press replay on.
The RNBSOULSA Top 30
- Disconnected – Rowlene
- levity – Sishii
- Don’t Say the Words – Manana
- All Mine – Carter Najar
- 4SHO – Lordkez & Kwesta
- Baggage – Nanette
- Be Mine – Reneilwe
- Will I Ever – Rehsa
- Stand By – Lola Soul
- Welela – Halo Yagami & Dusse wavy
- By The Time I Wake Up – Lusanda
- Azania – Dusse wavy & Drega
- I’ll Wait – Mars Baby
- Lungisa – Thando Zide & Manana
- I Love Music (Spotify Singles) – Shekhinah
- Slow – Xowié
- Yet – Jade Olivia
- Run Boy – Brandon Aura
- Both Sides Interlude – Oxii Moron
- Obvious – KLA & KLY
- Quite Frankly – Remo & Tylerwrldwide
- See You Again – Cindii Masina
- Lost Touch – Säylar Woods
- Money – Jemapelle James
- Lose Control – Liema Pantsi & Usimamane
- Go & Get It – ThandoNje & Saul Madiope
- Wena Wedwa – Abba’s Child & Suge
- It’s Over – Paxton
- Hot Tubs – Tyla
- One More Dance – Elaine, Major League Djz & Mpho.W
A Playlist Built on Discovery
The playlist opens with Rowlene’s “Disconnected,” a fitting entry point given her place at the intersection of alternative sound and contemporary R&B. From there, Sishii and Manana bring their own takes on emotion, and the range only grows: Carter Najar, Lordkez and Kwesta, Nanette, Reneilwe and Rehsa all offer different entry points into the genre, the kind of songs that turn an unfamiliar name into a new favourite by the time the track ends.
That range continues through Lola Soul, Halo Yagami and Dusse wavy, Lusanda, and Dusse wavy and Drega, artists proving there’s no single formula for South African R&B right now. Mars Baby, Thando Zide and Manana, and an established name in Shekhinah keep the conversation moving between newcomers and artists already known across the industry.
Further in, Xowié, Jade Olivia, Brandon Aura and Oxii Moron push the sound in new directions, while KLA and KLY, Remo and Tylerwrldwide, Cindii Masina, Säylar Woods and Jemapelle James highlight just how collaborative this scene has become.
The playlist also reflects how South African R&B stretches across the country, Johannesburg, Pretoria, Cape Town, Durban and beyond, heard through Liema Pantsi and Usimamane, ThandoNje and Saul Madiope, Abba’s Child and Suge, and Paxton.
Tyla, Elaine, and What Comes Next
At number 29 is Tyla with “Hot Tubs,” a reminder of what happens when South African sound reaches a global audience. The playlist closes at number 30 with Elaine, Major League Djz and Mpho.W’s “One More Dance,” a fitting way to end things, connecting the established R&B movement with the new generation still emerging behind it.
Press Play
You might already know Rowlene, Tyla or Elaine. But what about Rehsa, Lusanda, or Jade Olivia? What about Cindii Masina, Säylar Woods, Mars Baby or Xowié? That’s the point of this playlist: listen from one to thirty, don’t skip the unfamiliar name, and let the artists introduce themselves. Your next favourite might be waiting somewhere in the middle.
This is RNBSOULSA. This is South African R&B, and it’s only getting louder.
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