ABOUT SONDELA

Origins

In the swelling tide of global dance music, Sondela Recordings aims to be a rare imprint wading deep to capture each new wave of innovative African electronic music. Launched in 2021 by founder Louie Dunmore and tastemaker-DJ Sef Kombo under UK giant Defected Records, Sondela enters its 5th year as a free-standing movement – shape-shifting along with the evolutionary sounds championed since its inception.

Vision

Today, Louie and creative director CLEIDO sit at the helm, and at the heart, a community of passionate and ambitious creators leaning into breaking Afro-electronic music beyond the confines of definition. Anchored in the ancestry and imagination of the continent and its ever-evolving diaspora, Sondela persists in responding to a longstanding question: what happens when African electronic music is given space to be everything it can be, on its own terms? The answer can be heard in every Sondela release.

Breakthrough Releases & Moments

By placing pivotal producers as well as rising stars at the fore, Sondela invites a new generation of sonic architects to stand shoulder to shoulder. The first bid for connection came with our opening release, “Ezizweni,” in early 2021, by seasoned Berlin-based Hyenah, Durban’s legendary DJ Tira, and celebrated Afro-jazz vocalist Luke Ntombela. This set the tone for an inspiring, multifaceted glimpse into what a unified Afro-perspective could be.

In less than a year, that vision was made manifest, with Sondela earning a spot on Mixmag’s Best Dance Labels of 2021, and by 2022, Sondela was shortlisted in DJ Mag’s Best of British Awards. Since, “Ezizweni” has seen a remix each from Southern African Afro-house royalty Atmos Blaq and Nitefreak, further celebrating the diversity of African intentions within the Sondela stronghold.

From Sudanese Emmanuel Jal’s “BileBile” to South African 3 Step pioneer Thakzin’s “The Magnificent Dance,” Sondela embraces all tastes and textures within the deeper shades of Afro house-and-tech, breaking down the monolith-myth and showcasing the music for what it truly is: expansive, timeless, intelligent and constantly in flux.

Live Experiences

Where the movement really shines, however, is in the spaces created off the record. Our Sondela Showcases are where our growing global community has the opportunity to move as one, previously hosted in London, Ibiza, Johannesburg, Cape Town, Nairobi & Amsterdam, among many others. Artists that bring the heat to our showcases are immortalized on our Sondela LIVE YouTube & Soundcloud series’.

Sondela events are less about hype, and more about homecoming. For many, these nights mark the first time African electronic music can be brought to its fullest expressions. Held for the first time on African soil in 2022 in Johannesburg, then returning to the City of Gold in 2024, and debuting the showcase in Cape Town and Nairobi - it’s there that dancefloors become diasporic reunions.

Content Series

Sondela Spotlight is our in-house mix series, offering over 80 hours of exploratory sounds by artists that are essential to the Sondela story. Sondela RADIO invites respected tastemakers into the hotseat to show our community why they have earned their stripes. On the other hand, Sondela STORIES is where artists get personal and break down the meaning of their music, and share their most precious moments with our community. Every dance, every drop and every drum, from the dancefloor to the decks, each series is an offering that encompasses what we do and who we are.

Our Mission

Sondela is an invitation to dance, to share, to connect. We’re committed to championing genre-defying talent, exploring emerging styles and continuing to showcase the beauty, complexity and power of electronic music, alongside the people who come to share in it.

For too long, Afro-influenced music lived in the margins of Europe’s club spaces, despite its deep contributions to global dance culture, and in the age of extraction and exploitation, Sondela seeks out and returns to the source as we amplify the artists who live and breathe their sounds, wherever they may be. This is an invitation to dance, and so much more. Join us.