There aren’t many people who’ve had a longer and more impactful reign on the entertainment industry than Siya Metane, the entrepreneur and musician popularly known as Slikour.
Over the past two decades, he’s successfully emerged from small beginnings in the East Rand and made it to the very top of South African urban culture.
Metane first emerged as a part of the iconic rap group Skwatta Kamp, which exploded on to the scene with a couple of hugely successful albums in the early 2000s.
During this run, the group became one of the most successful musical acts in the country and received several awards along the way.
Over the years, Metane stepped away from rapping and launched SlikourOnLife, an online publication catering to music fans from across the continent.
SlikourOnLife has grown to become a huge media platform drawing tens of thousands of monthly readers and dozens of commercial sponsorship opportunities.
In a rare interview, last year Metane sat down with Zingah and revealed how being around AKA and watching him come up in the industry made him realise he needed to stop rapping.
“When I knew I need to stop rapping, I literally was around a session with AKA and he was starting.”
“I saw him grow and it was in early 2010/2011, and I said ‘yo, this guy is so hungry for this’. I was like if this guy is so hungry for this, I can’t allow myself to walk in second if I know that I’m second because I’m not as hungry as him and that’s when I lost interest.”
Now, Metane is set to share his journey through his new book, “Slikour: The Life Story Of A Hip-Hop Pioneer”, which he wrote with Helen Herimbi-Moremi.
A description on publisher Penguin’s website explains; “Told with signature humour, this memoir gives readers an all-access pass to the moments and the music that made the man, detailing the courage it took to overcome his self-doubt and to mould himself into a media maverick.”
It further adds that the book is a “candid look at what it takes to make it in the South African music and digital media scenes and what connection can achieve”.
Metane took to Instagram to share his excitement at the book’s release: “I can never forget the day my mother told me I can't finish my studies… nor can I forget the humiliating job rejections that came after.”
“With all my confidence decimated I said to God if you give me one chance I'll make sure I don't abuse it. I was tested with not only a chance to make money but fame too through Skwatta Kamp.
“I was given a big chance to either stick to the vow or f*** it up. I now understand sticking to the vow meant giving others a chance,” he said.
“Transfer of good fortune in good faith multiplies your fortune. The mistake I made and many make is thinking it's about the music or the culture but it's really a transfer of energy.
“I'd love you to read this book and see how one small energy (me) triggered the movement of a culture. I'm about to open a new chapter in my life but first let me share the old chapter.”