In an impressive feat, the producer Master KG and vocalist Nomcebo’s collaboration has reached new heights with global success. With the YouTube music video currently sitting at close to 185 million views, the song has towered above all its contemporaries in impact and ubiquity. The instrumental of the chart-topping hit was conceived in July 2019 and completed in August of the same year.
Master KG envisioned Nomcebo’s vocals on the beat, and upon its completion, he contacted her for a collaboration to which she agreed. Jerusalema was released two months later in October on YouTube as audio only, and without much promotion, the video quickly hit its first milestone, reaching 1 million views in a week.
In December of 2019 on the Openmic Productions YouTube channel, the official music video for Jerusalema was uploaded, keeping up with the audio release by gaining 3 million views in two weeks. South Africa had been taken over by the infectious tune, being a mainstay on radio and music channels.
By February 2020, the song had Master KG and Nomcebo in the international public’s eye, landing the artists opportunities to perform across Africa and in Europe. #JerusalemaDanceChallenge flooded social media for the next three months, with participants hailing from all corners of the globe.
The meteoric rise has continued throughout the year, nabbing a Burna Boy remix of the song along the way, which the Nigerian superstar singer was very happy to make. Jerusalema also received an approving nod from the nations finest, President Cyril Ramaphosa, as he urged his fellow countrymen to participate in the smash hit’s dance challenge on Heritage Day. South Africans obliged, with everyone getting together to celebrate the country’s rich history and loosening of lockdown regulations.
Jerusalema currently sits atop the charts of several countries and has gained platinum certifications in Belgium, Italy and France. With remixes and challenges being uploaded by fans on a daily basis, almost a year after its initial release, it is hard to see the upward trajectory of the song slowing down.
Image: Madhuri Rambaran
