Lüderitz to the world: The takeover of Shax Champion
Shax drops new single ‘Uh-haa’
The power of social media continues to launch new creative talents, and the latest is Andreas Shipanga, popularly known as 'Shax Champion', an amapiano artist with a unique sound who is making waves across Namibia’s music scene.
A video of Shax performing a rap freestyle recently went viral on TikTok, sparking growing demand for the young artist to release more music.
Although he has been a member of a youth choir in his hometown of Lüderitz since the age of five, Shax, now 19, says he never planned to pursue music as a career. He only realised last year that his sound was resonating with listeners and decided to dedicate himself fully to producing more of his own unique music.
“I was just doing me and then it turned out to be different and just totally unique,” he explained.
At just 19, Shax has already released three hit songs and recently returned from Johannesburg, South Africa, where he was booked to perform.
While there, he was spotted with South African musician Scotts Maphuma, sparking rumours of a possible international collaboration.
Today's release: ‘Uh-haa’
In an interview with Tjil, Shax confirmed that he finalised a collaborative project with South African artist Eeque during his trip but remained mum about the release date. There’s good news for his fans, however – Shax revealed that he will be dropping a new single today.
The song, titled ‘Uh-haa’, will be available on YouTube, Spotify and Apple Music.
Shax said the single features an experimental sound that differs slightly from his usual style.
“This new song that's coming, we got creative a bit,” he said, adding that it introduces a fresh twist to his sound. He also revealed that he plans to release at least three more tracks before the end of the year.
Shax draws inspiration from everything around him, including his personal experiences, travels, the people he meets, his environment and the stories of others.
“Whatever you see, you're picking up ideas,” he said, noting that his imagination also forms part of the creative process.
Speaking about the outpouring of love and support from his fans, Shax said he is still getting used to it but deeply appreciates it.
“I'm overwhelmed. I appreciate the love that I get every day. It just feels amazing.”
Shax highlighted that preparation is key when hitting the studio.
“My first time in the studio, it went very well, you know. Luckily, I just recorded the whole thing once, because I came prepared,” he said.
That first song, titled ‘Soos ’n Dier’, was mixed and mastered by his cousin, Trey.
In June this year, Shax featured Masketeers on another track, 'On My Chest', which now has 1.4 million views on YouTube.
He followed up the track with another single titled 'Kop Pyne', released on 10 September this year.
Future
According to Desmond Shipanga, the creative director of Birdies Entertainment, who is part of Shax’s management team, the aim is to go international.
“I believe he'll become an international artist, not just Namibian or African, but he'll become a global artist because, I'm repeating it again, music is a universal language,” he said.
Shipanga, however, stressed that it will take a lot of discipline and hard work to achieve widespread acclaim.
“He takes the criticism well and I think he can go very far,” he said about his working relationship with Shax.
Shax Champion also has a line of t-shirts, which are available countrywide.
Asked what else he is working on, he said, for now, "no surprises. We're just focusing on the t-shirts and music.”
Shax will be performing in Katima Mulilo later this year and will also make an appearance in Cape Town in December. Potential collaborators are encouraged to reach out to his management team via WhatsApp at 085 2234908.
[email protected]
A video of Shax performing a rap freestyle recently went viral on TikTok, sparking growing demand for the young artist to release more music.
Although he has been a member of a youth choir in his hometown of Lüderitz since the age of five, Shax, now 19, says he never planned to pursue music as a career. He only realised last year that his sound was resonating with listeners and decided to dedicate himself fully to producing more of his own unique music.
“I was just doing me and then it turned out to be different and just totally unique,” he explained.
At just 19, Shax has already released three hit songs and recently returned from Johannesburg, South Africa, where he was booked to perform.
While there, he was spotted with South African musician Scotts Maphuma, sparking rumours of a possible international collaboration.
Today's release: ‘Uh-haa’
In an interview with Tjil, Shax confirmed that he finalised a collaborative project with South African artist Eeque during his trip but remained mum about the release date. There’s good news for his fans, however – Shax revealed that he will be dropping a new single today.
The song, titled ‘Uh-haa’, will be available on YouTube, Spotify and Apple Music.
Shax said the single features an experimental sound that differs slightly from his usual style.
“This new song that's coming, we got creative a bit,” he said, adding that it introduces a fresh twist to his sound. He also revealed that he plans to release at least three more tracks before the end of the year.
Shax draws inspiration from everything around him, including his personal experiences, travels, the people he meets, his environment and the stories of others.
“Whatever you see, you're picking up ideas,” he said, noting that his imagination also forms part of the creative process.
Speaking about the outpouring of love and support from his fans, Shax said he is still getting used to it but deeply appreciates it.
“I'm overwhelmed. I appreciate the love that I get every day. It just feels amazing.”
Shax highlighted that preparation is key when hitting the studio.
“My first time in the studio, it went very well, you know. Luckily, I just recorded the whole thing once, because I came prepared,” he said.
That first song, titled ‘Soos ’n Dier’, was mixed and mastered by his cousin, Trey.
In June this year, Shax featured Masketeers on another track, 'On My Chest', which now has 1.4 million views on YouTube.
He followed up the track with another single titled 'Kop Pyne', released on 10 September this year.
Future
According to Desmond Shipanga, the creative director of Birdies Entertainment, who is part of Shax’s management team, the aim is to go international.
“I believe he'll become an international artist, not just Namibian or African, but he'll become a global artist because, I'm repeating it again, music is a universal language,” he said.
Shipanga, however, stressed that it will take a lot of discipline and hard work to achieve widespread acclaim.
“He takes the criticism well and I think he can go very far,” he said about his working relationship with Shax.
Shax Champion also has a line of t-shirts, which are available countrywide.
Asked what else he is working on, he said, for now, "no surprises. We're just focusing on the t-shirts and music.”
Shax will be performing in Katima Mulilo later this year and will also make an appearance in Cape Town in December. Potential collaborators are encouraged to reach out to his management team via WhatsApp at 085 2234908.
[email protected]
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