FROM SOWETO TO THE WORLD

 Thapelo Modiela, professionally known as Speeka, is a music producer, content creator, director and film maker born and raised in Soweto.

“If we talking musically my biggest influence had to be my mother,” said the super producer.

Thapelo "Speeka" Modiela. Picture taken from Soundcloud

His mother bought him a cassette tape of the American hip hop group The Fugees which featured the song Killing me softly. “She bought that tape for me thinking it was a soul album because she was into soul and gospel, but when we played it we discovered it was something different, this was hip hop,” he added.

It was at this time when he began to be curious about the sound he just heard and wanted more of it.

He has always been fascinated by music but never thought it could be something he can pursue as a career until he came across a music creating software called FL studio. Even though to him it started off as a hobby, the more he spent his time making music the more he realized that this is something he can actually make a living out of.

He explained that it him studying IT and wasting his money to realize that is true love and passion was music.

Down the line then came Sotra Cyphers which is a Hip Hop series that the producer claimed started accidentally. During a recording session in May 2016, with an artist who goes by the name of Maseven, who happen to be there to record songs with Big Zulu, Anzo, Nubian Queen Masisi and Zwes Tornado.

“The recording sessions will usually take long hours when they were writing their verses, I got bored, and I was like can’t we do something to crank up our creative juices,” he recalls.

That’s when he picked up his camera and filmed the artists rapping over his beats. The next day he sat down with the footage and audio and started editing, that’s when he realized he was on to something.

Sotra Cyphers exclusive. Picture from Zkhiphani 

The 5th year anniversary of Sotra Cyphers went on to win an award for the best short documentary at the New York Hip Hop TV film festival.

Speeka said that winning this award was special to him because part of the story and how Sotra Cyphers came together, the late HHP had a huge impact to his decision to finally quit his day job and pursue music full time and it meant a lot to him that he got to tell that story.

It's not only Sotra Cyphers that Speeka has put life into, but also a show called Kasi Rap Records which first appeared on Gau TV for its first and second season, and with its third season appearing on SABC 1. Kasi Rap Records is a Hip Hop show that showcases talent especially in the underground scene and promotes local businesses.

Speeka added that it’s his love for hip hop that motivates him to push even harder because to him this is more than just a genre but it’s a culture that influences how he talks, dresses. The most important this is how it has introduced him to his confidence and it is the love that has made him to continue making music and the ideas that he comes up with.

“We all have ideas that pop up into our minds but are too afraid to work on them. Whenever Speeka has something in his mind, he will surely bring life into it no matter how ridiculous it may sound,” commented Chris Mcee Mayanda who is a digital creator and a longtime fan of Speeka.

The producer, said that the highlight of his career (via Sotra Cyphers) is having Stogie T in studio, and as long as you love what your doing it will eventually work out. If you love it and become successful at it, it won’t matter. If you get into hip hop with the expectation of making money it’s going to be rough for you, as long as you love what your doing it will eventually lead you to a path that you are made for.