In a music world obsessed with trends, Afrohouse duo Raptured Roots are ripping up the rulebook and fans can’t get enough.
The duo famed for producing the hit “Itsatsaula” by Han C and Charma Gal, and appearing on Khoisan’s ‘Mosalagae’ single are stepping into a bold new era that promises bigger sounds, deeper emotion, and unforgettable live moments.
And this time, they’re not just pressing play, they’re bringing the music to life.
With more than a decade in the game, the pair who previously dropped their acclaimed 2019 EP New Beginning featuring heavyweights like Team Distant, Jay Sax SA, and Cindy are now transforming their performances into immersive semi-live spectacles powered by live keys.
For them, it’s more than just a tweak. It’s a revolution.
“We didn’t want to just play music,” they reveal.
“We wanted to experience it with the audience to make every performance feel alive and unrepeatable,” the talented duo told The Voice.
Behind the beats are two artists whose journeys began worlds apart, but collided to create magic.
Ezekiel Gosiame Ntebele, 31, from Mahalapye, first fell in love with rhythm on the dance floor before stepping behind DJ decks in high school.
“I was first moved by the rhythm as a dancer,” he recalls.
“Being behind the decks felt natural. I wanted to control the energy the way I felt it,” he said.
Meanwhile, Tlotso Kgautlhe, 28, from Moshupa, was raised in a church-filled home where music wasn’t just heard it was felt.
“The keyboard was my first language,” he says.
“Growing up in church taught me how to feel music before I even understood theory,” Khautlhe said.
Their creative paths finally crossed in 2015 during the Uncharted Roots project and what began as a simple collaboration quickly turned into something much deeper.
“The chemistry was instant,” they admit.
“It stopped being just about making tracks. It became about building something meaningful together,” the duo told The Voice.
For the two producers, choosing Afrohouse wasn’t random, it was personal.
For Ezekiel, the groove was irresistible while for Tlotso, the rhythm gave melodies space to breathe, and together, they found their musical home.
“Afrohouse gave us identity. It carries our roots, our stories and our rhythms but it also lets us experiment.”
As the global scene evolved, the explosive rise of 3Step Afrohouse pushed them even further.
“3Step brought a new bounce, a new swing,” they say. “It challenged us to adapt and push our creativity even further.”
Determined to turn the industry on its head, the duo decided to ditch the familiar DJ-and-drums format for a daring DJ and live keys setup.
“Carve your own lane,” they insist. “We respect the DJ and drums format it’s powerful. But we asked ourselves, what makes us different?”
The answer was live keys and it changed everything.
“With live keys, we’re not confined to the original structure of a song,” they explain. “We can stretch it, strip it down, rebuild it in the moment. It adds emotion. It adds unpredictability,” explained Kgautlhe.
And fans are feeling the difference.
No two sets are ever the same.
No two moments repeat.
Every show becomes a one-off experience.
“We want people to leave our set feeling like they witnessed something exclusive. Not just a playlist but a moment,” said Ntebele.
Their performances now blend original productions with carefully selected tracks shaping the modern Afrohouse and 3Step Afrohouse movement striking a balance between authenticity and staying ahead of the curve.
But for Raptured Roots, this isn’t the finish line.
It’s the launchpad.
“At the end of the day, this evolution is about growth. We’re not abandoning who we were, e’re expanding it,” they added with some conviction.
And if their latest move is anything to go by this bold new chapter could be their biggest yet.
