Conversations with NALEDI

Today we’d like to introduce you to NALEDI.

Hi NALEDI, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself. 
Dumelang to Voyage LA audience! I’m so honored to be given an opportunity to talk with your publication. I’m a young woman who grew up in Johannesburg, South Africa, with my mother and younger brother. I have always been a very busy child, full of ideas and dreams. In fact, many of my neighbors have stories of me starting a new business every week, trying to make enough money to catch the ice cream truck and spoil my friends when it drives down our road. I have always had a passion for life and for art. I did ballet for 13 years and was always the singer of our family. I enjoy spending my time watching musicals, playing around with technology, and baking. I also have a deep love for quality time with my friends, who always end up part of one of my ‘big’ ideas. 

My father had a deep love for music. 

He taught himself classical guitar and would take me to jazz concerts around Joburg. 

I remember many nights at The Orbit as well as many Joy of Jazz Festivals. In fact, we would often stay around for the late sessions, and I would be the 7-year-old on his shoulders watching greats such as Earl Klugh, Jimmy Dludlu, and Ntate Hotsix Mabuse. There was a lot of jazz and African pop playing on our radios. My dad would host jam sessions in our backyard, and I would be the session vocalist, singing music from Brenda Fassie to Diana Ross. I also spent a lot of time at church, which was Anglican. So, the hymns and traditional South African hymns played a significant role. My mom would play the likes of Lusanda and Amadodana aseWesile on our way to and from school. I used to travel to music bookstores a lot, and my dad would let me buy books even though I didn’t know how to read the music but would pretend to read along with the lyrics on the scores. When I was 7 my mom and father bought me a classical guitar and I tried to learn but quit, because it ‘hurt my fingers’. At 9 years old, I concluded that I will be the next Alicia Keys, so I had my parents buy me a keyboard… I would play every day for hours, and the rest is history. 

Every wedding, funeral, event it was “Naledi, please give an item.” Although I became reluctant as I got older, it was always something I had been associated with and carried with me. For myself, I knew from childhood that I wanted to perform. It was probably around grade 8 that I decided for myself that I would go into music. 

However, the reluctance from my immediate family to step into a career with no set prospects guided me away. Around grade 9, I remember exploring Film and Television Production because the name sounded fancy and ‘professional’; however, the more I dug in, the more I realized it wasn’t where I wanted to be in the industry. 

The more I did work with Youth@SAIIA, the more I was drawn into International Relations. I ended up studying this at UCT, however I still knew that was not were my purpose lied. I finally made the decision in my first year at UCT, at 17, that I would go into Music and figure it out in the best way for me. 

I finally moved to the US in 2018 to go study jazz performance at the New England Conservatory. It was here I began to dig deeper into what my voice was brought here to say. I became very enthralled with my musical lineage and started studying and teaching more on South African Jazz. Being the only African student in my conservatory led to a deep culture excavation on what blackness and Africaness looked like in jazz. There, I found many connections between the lineage here in the US and back at home. During this time, I also realized how deeply connected gender inequality, social development, and music were linked. I was supported by my conservatory to found the Dreaming Girls Arts Foundation, which has a goal to cultivate critically conscious women and girls in society through arts-focused programming, mentorship, and resource sourcing. Since its inception in 2019, we hosted 2 major conferences and many smaller development programs in South African communities. 

Post graduation, I began my multifaceted artistry by touring a show titled Dreaming Zenzile, which excavated the life of Miriam Makeba – South African artist and Activist. I spent the year touring the US and sharing this story which is so pertinent to my lineage. The most beautiful show for me was in Boston, as I felt like being back in a community where I so deeply sought someone like myself in artistic spaces felt significant as I came back and showed up as that person. When I finished with Dreaming Zenzile, I continued performing all around the US and South Africa. I also had the opportunity to work with over 15000 US Students, teaching them all about my musical history. 

I am currently in the process of releasing my EP, which comes out on June 21st. The first single, “P[x]J will be releasing on February 16th. 

In June ‘22, I woke up my heart beating so fast. It felt like I had been running by from tragedy all my life. Like we as humanity had been fighting. I wrote this note, got distracted and swiped on Twitter, then saw more tragedy. A week ago, there was a shooting at a grocery story in Buffalo, New York. My mother called me every day to make sure I was still alive. This was no way to live. 

My first single, “P[x]J,” is a testament to this fight for Peace and Justice. It is an urgent call to action for us and for our leaders. 

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Finding self in uncommon land. Forging a new path for myself. Being homesick. Being a woman in the industry and finding ways to navigate different challenges. 

What do you think about happiness?
I love people, and I love connecting with them. I speak 8 languages and learning 2 more, hoping to be able to speak to people in all different communities. I find happiness in my family and friends, and community. 

I love playing the Sims when I want to disconnect from the world… I’ve been playing since I was 7: SUL SUL! 

Don’t threaten me with a good time!!! I love to sing and dance with my people. 

Contact Info:

• Website: ledimusiq.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ledi_musiq/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LediMusiq
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/ledi_musiq
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXSm3mj_VvSO7Lrll8lOumQ

Image Credits
Chris Fox-Kelly
Andrew Hurbult
Margot Schulman