Name: Deep Narratives
Members: Khayelihle Ngcobo, Mpumelelo Sithole
Nationality: South African
Occupation: Producers
Current release: Deep Narratives team up with Culoe De Song and ZVRI for their new single “Insimbi”, out now via Narrative.
Recommendations: Book - The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F**k; Music - Deep Narratives - "Hard Cong"

If you enjoyed this Deep Narratives interview and would like to stay up to date with the duo and their music, visit them on Instagram, Facebook, Soundcloud, and twitter.



When I listen to music, I see shapes, objects and colours. What happens in your body when you are listening? Do you listen with your eyes open or closed?

When we listen to music, we are more relaxed in the body, mind and soul.

We listen with our eyes closed.

What were your very first steps in music like and how would you rate the gains made through experience - can one train/learn being an artist?

We fell in love with music through our cousins, who used to collect a lot of music on CDs.

We’re 50/50 on whether it’s born or trained. Some people are born with an innate artistic talent. But it is also very possible to learn to be an artist; artistry is very broad in that regard.

According to scientific studies, we make our deepest and most incisive musical experiences between the ages of 13-16. What did music mean to you at that age and what’s changed since then?

Our main drive for creating music is to bring something new to the table and this motivation mainly comes from our early musical experiences, the musical journey of our childhood.

We’re also inspired by our contemporaries like Black Coffee, Culoe De Song, Dixon etc … All these guys are just pushing the sound out there globally and it's a motivation for us to make more music.



What, would you say, are the key ideas behind your approach to music and what motivates you to create?

Back in the day, we thought that music was just for dancing. We’ve come to feel that music is much more impactful than that; it’s the universal language.

Our approach now is to create music that makes people feel some type of way, whenever they're listening to Deep Narratives.

To quote a question by the great Bruce Duffie: When you come up with a musical idea, have you created the idea or have you discovered the idea?

We would like to believe that you have created the idea if you come up with it.

Paul Simon said “the way that I listen to my own records is not for the chords or the lyrics - my first impression is of the overall sound.” What Is your own take on that and how would you define your personal sound?

With regards to our own music, we are definitely more in love with the overall sound and not just the lyrics or chords. The overall sound is the sound to us, since it's the combination, or fusion, of different elements that make the song what it is.

Sound, song, and rhythm are all around us, from animal noises to the waves of the ocean. What, if any, are some of the most moving experiences you’ve had with these

Yes, it is often these sounds that are some of the most moving experiences, although it’s up for debate how far you’d describe them as ‘musical’?

There's always a low vocal of a barking dog in majority of our songs, actually. It was funny at first but we’ve managed to make it blend and be musical as well.

From very deep/high/loud/quiet sounds to very long/short/simple/complex compositions - are there extremes in music you feel drawn to and what response do they elicit?

We always prefer sounds that are simple rather than complex, as this allows space for each sound to breath so that all the elements in a song can complement each other.

Could you describe your creative process on the basis of one of your pieces, live performances or albums that is particularly dear to you, please?

The creative process behind creating “Umsindo” was crazy, that was definitely when our sound took off.



We were just having a lazy in studio, creating and deleting files then Vertic decided to record vocals using his phone as we didn’t have proper studio equipment. The rest is history.

Do you conduct “experiments” or make use of scientific insights when you are remaking music?

Yes we experiment with lots of different ways of making music, as we’re always trying to bring a better sound to the people.

How does the way you make music reflect the way you live your life? Can we learn lessons about life by understanding music on a deeper level?

In our life we always try to maintain a broader perspective and approach life creatively. This is reflected in our music, which is itself creative and draws from a broad mixture of different genres.

Do you feel as though writing or performing a piece of music is inherently different from something like making a great cup of coffee? What do you express through music that you couldn’t or wouldn’t in more tasks?

Yes it is different, there's a satisfying creative process with writing and performing music that is missing from less artistic tasks like making coffee.

When we perform on stage, we are primarily entertaining. We express how the music makes us feel which enables us to connect with our audience, and they can respond back with a positive attitude.

Every time I listen to ‘Albedo 0.39’ by Vangelis, I choke up. But the lyrics are made up of nothing but numbers and values. Do you, too, have a song or piece of music that affects you in a way that you can’t explain?

Yes we do. “Insimbi” is a song that affects us in a way we can't explain, the progression of it was way beyond our imagination.

If you could make a wish for the future – what are developments in music you would like to see and hear?

We would like to see more creativity in the music that people are producing as well as more tracks on the lyrical side as well; let's all be intentional with our music!