Lusanda’s new single “Progress” describes the South African singer-songwriter’s process of becoming in a manner that is signature to her – with emotional precision and disarming vulnerability. As was the case with her fan favourite debut single “When You’re Around”, meandering on social media is how she came across one of the song’s producers. Lusanda’s string of now infamous TikTok covers showcasing her knack for reinterpreting pop, R&B and rap classics piqued the interest of GRAMMY-nominated London-based producer Sunny Kale (J Balvin, Stormzy, Masego, J Hus).
One particular beat he sent her via Instagram just so happened to boast this roster of heavy-hitting collaborators: Charlotte Day Wilson, Bad Bad Not Good, and a 2x GRAMMY-winning hyphenate Biako (Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter and Tyler, the Creator’s Chromokopia) on whose hard drive the original song idea had been for 6 years. For months Lusanda was transfixed: “I was listening to that song every day, at least twice a day. But I couldn’t write on it just yet. I was really, really stuck. I just had too many ideas in my head and too many things going on,” she reveals.
Confronting her mental block by putting it on paper was what opened the floodgates. “Stumbling, fumbling,” the lines opening the R&B confessional with a backdrop that mimics a foggy dream state, preceding stripped-back verses and a blooming chorus. The track mirrors the emotional arc of the lyrics: uncertain beginnings growing into something whole and bright. “Believe in your ideas, however long they take, ”Biako summarizes its theme, “You never know how they will grow and manifest.”
Equal parts testimony and prophecy, “Progress” stands out in a relatively new but evenly-paced career which, this year, has seen Lusanda named among Apple Music’s Africa Rising Class of 2025. More recently, she delivered a haunting Spotify Singles cover of “Mad World” as part of the global streaming platform’s EQUAL Africa program. These milestones reflect both the industry’s early belief in her and the captivating open-heartedness she brings to each performance. “Writing based off experience is what helped me finally write freely and finish the song. It felt like a release. In 2022 I felt like I had been making a lot of mistakes but I knew there was something bigger coming. I am coming to realize the experiences we have as adults are not what we imagine. As children we really glamorize adulthood and when you start experiencing it, it’s just not always fun, but it’s all for a reason”.
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Listen to ‘Process’ Here
Press release courtesy of Sheila Afari PR
