What made this the sort of show that people will be talking about for months to come, however, was the stage presence of Ninja and Vi$$er.
Die Antwoord’s songs blend Second Summer of Love techno (that’s the main riff from 808 State’s “Cubik” driving? “Wat Kyk Jy?”) with rhymes delivered in an often incomprehensible mélange of South African English and Afrikaans slang. With its melodramatic synth strings and Ninja’s over-the-top boasting-not to mention Vi$$er’s “I am your butterfly/I need your protection” hook-“Enter the Ninja” is almost comically important-sounding, and it’s also one of the most exciting debut singles of the past five years.Īgainst all odds, the performance didn’t go downhill fast after that almost-too-perfect start. Accompanied by the masked Vuilgeboost on laptops and mixers (regular Die Antwoord DJ Hi-Tek is reportedly afraid of flying), the two vocalists came out in matching white track suits covered in crude black graffiti scribbles. But Die Antwoord’s decision to start its set with “Enter the Ninja” was a stroke of genius, designed to get the crowd going apeshit from the first note.
In general, you want to save that for the end, as a reward to the audience for sticking with you. Starting with your best-known song is almost always a bad idea. As evidence, detractors point to Ninja’s pre–Die Antwoord projects, which include outfits such as the Constructus Corporation and, whose cerebral “next level” electro-rap was as much conceptual art as it was hip-hop.Īnd if the same is true of Die Antwoord, does it matter? The fact is, the group is presenting something that most of the world has never seen or heard before, and as it ably demonstrated in its hour-long Venue show, it’s really fokken entertaining. Or maybe more than once, since the word from the Flats is that Ninja and Vi$$er (real names: Watkin Tudor Jones and, um, Yolandi Visser) are cultural tourists who don’t really belong to the milieu they claim to represent. Those who cop Die Antwoord’s signature look-a riotous collage of old-school American hip-hop, British chav style, and ’80s trash culture-are zef, once removed. Vancouver is more than 16,000 kilometres from Cape Town, but a large number of those who showed up for Die Antwoord’s first-ever Canadian performance at a sold-out Venue came decked out for a night on the Flats. This was not Ninja and Yo-Landi Vi$$er, however, but a pair of audience members sporting ensembles inspired by Die Antwoord’s MCs. The question, according to Ninja: “Whatever, man.The tall dude in the homemade headband with “Zef Side” scrawled on it in magic marker and the girl in the striped tights and strategically torn tank top were a fascinating spectacle to behold. Die Antwoord means “the answer” in Afrikaans.They've been accused of misogyny, homophobia, racism and cultural appropriation. The group is famous for both its surreal “ugly is beautiful” music videos and its myriad controversies.In 2017, Die Antwoord announced plans to disband after their fifth album, The Book of Zef, which finally dropped in March 2020.The album includes “Uncle Jimmy”, a skit that pokes fun at Interscope boss Jimmy Iovine.
Die Antwoord split with Interscope before dropping their sophomore LP, Ten$ion.The group’s debut album, $O$, arrived in American that year. After enjoying viral popularity online, Die Antwoord signed with Interscope Records in 2010.Die Antwoord freaked the world out with their 2009 breakout video “Beat Boy”, featuring rapper Yolandi Visser rocking short bangs and bandmate Ninja in Pink Floyd boxer shorts.The band describes its aesthetic as “Zef Side”-“zef” being a South African counter-culture movement that celebrates being poor but flashy.Die Antwoord is a brash, controversy-courting hip-hop and electronic group from Cape Town, South Africa.
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