In Conversation with: Kazz Khalif

Meet Award Winning African Pop artist Kazz Khalif

Meet Kazz Khalif, birth name Farhaan Khan was born in Malawi and raised in Zimbabwe. Kazz is the co-founder of Boomslang Production, a multi-faceted media house focusing on four aspects of the industry, namely audio engineering, artist development, video production and Clothing line.

The Southern African artist inherited his love for music from his father. Kazz notes, “My love for music stemmed from watching my father perform in his band (The KJ’s) I saw his eyes widen and brighten whenever he picked up his guitar. He was a big part of my love of music, and I knew that’s what I wanted to be when I grew up.”

“My earliest memories go back to when I was a toddler. I remember singing ‘Chimsoro’ by Oliver Mtukudzi and I confirmed this with my sister, and she also said I loved singing along to Gwen Guthrie’s song ‘Ain’t nothing going on but the rent’.”

The admiration, exposure, and endless opportunities to sing/dance on any and every occasion led to the beginning of Pryzm Inc Studio. Kazz spent a lot of time creating material with his brother (Bkay), eventually, the brothers chose to rebrand and thus, Boomslang Production was born. 

Bkay and Kazz eventually found themselves in the UK searching for greener pastures where they won the show “Live and Unsigned”. As a duo, they recorded numerous hit songs, such as ‘Amina Kadeya’, ‘7 wonders’, ‘Ndikati Hello’ a collabo with Decibel, a well-known Zimbabwean artist with numerous hits from the early 2000s. the brothers split, and Kazz decided to pursue his solo career.

The African Pop artist is well known for his raw energy and magnetism, he is one of the hardest-working African Pop artists in the UK and Zimbabwe. Kazz is a seminal frontrunner of the fast-growing Afropop/R&B movement coming out of Southern Africa. He has been making waves across the world over the last few years with performances on different continents. Kazz identifies, ‘Three little birds’ by Bob Marley as the soundtrack to his life. 

Including his father, several artists across different genres have influenced Kazz’s music the likes of, “Sean Paul, Fortune Muparutsa, Elvis Presley, Joe Thomas, Chris Brown, Bob Marley, Andy Brown, Michael Jackson, Paul Simon.”

The African Pop artist uses several processes when he is writing music. His favourite process involves, getting lost in the moment and vibing in the studio with other like-minded artists to create magic.

Kazz Khalif would love for his fans to create emotional bonds with his music. “You know the kind that when you listen to the song, straight away it takes you to a place you experienced a powerful emotion with someone/somewhere. That’s magic to me and I think I’ll spend the rest of my life trying to create that for others.”

For someone new to his music, Kazz recommends they start with the following: 

– Amina Kadeya 

(It’s a love story that was made into a children’s game that has been around for almost 4 generations)

– Jolling

(This song is an anthem for the culture. It talks about the lifestyle and way we speak in our community and how one word can mean so many things) 

– Bata Msana

(It’s a wedding song with a famous line that everyone knew growing up in Zimbabwe) 

– Snap That

(It’s a song about taking pictures with loved ones. It has a lot to do with how social media was one of the main options of communication with family and friends during covid time) 

– 7 Wonders 

(Our anthem which talks about our amazing county Zimbabwe) 

Some of the most notable highlights of Kazz Khalif’s career have been, rubbing shoulders with many celebrities when he performed in Bahrain at the Formula 1 after-party. Winning an International Diaspora Song of the Year Award at the Star FM Awards (Zimbabwe), and headlining Zimfest.

Asked about what we can expect from him for the rest of the year, Kazz answered, “I have a lot planned this year. Expect a couple of collaborations and some solo singles coming your way.”

“In the future, I’d love to work with some of the greats like Alick Macheso, Diamond Platinum, Dj Maphorisa, as well as some up & coming talent. One person I would have loved to work with was AKA. The man was talented and the fact that he was representing our coloured community made me so proud & working with him would have been an honour.”

Spotify: Kazz Khalif

Facebook: Kazz Khalif

YouTube: Kazz Khalif

Twitter: Kazz Khalif

Thank you for reading, please browse the blog for more interviews. Don’t forget to share, comment and subscribe to #zimboson.