When asked how he would describe the project - frontman Yannick Wilde says, “It’s a constantly evolving tapestry of culture, emotion and melody”. The musical style of Native Young can be described as Psychedelic Afropop / Folk. On stage the collective blends African percussion, Marimba, Acoustic guitars, Synthesizers and Electronic drums with anthemic vocals and raw uplifting energy.
In 2016 the collective brought their unique fusion sound across the ocean to the streets of Berlin where they busked and performed at prestigious international festivals including Fusion festival in Germany, Les Escales in France and Lake of Stars in Malawi. That same year saw the release of Native Young's first EP 'Kings' - which subsequently won a prestigious SAMA (South African Music Award) for 'Best Alternative Album' in 2017. The live band also opened for Australian superstars Angus & Julia Stone during their 2018 sold out tour of South Africa and Native Young was one of 20 invited acts to Ferrara Buskers Festival 2018 in Italy.
Over the last year the Spotify listenership for Native Young has reached over 40 000 monthly listeners and 1 million streams in 65 countries and continues to grow each day - Switzerland being the second biggest listenership on the list. Native Young kicked off 2019 with the release of 'Erase' - a new single remixed exclusively by house DJ masters Black Motion. The track quickly reached number one on South Africa’s 5FM dance chart and continues to receive high rotation.
As for the future, Yannick is currently hard at work finishing up production on a brand new EP called 'Ashes' - scheduled for release in 2022. Music is that ephemeral expression that seems to connect us all and It’s this sentiment that boldly shines in the raw and colourful tale of Native Young.