Youth Month 2025: Culture – Shaping Identity

#40 Celebrating the South African Youth

Jun 18, 2025

This June, South Africa commemorates Youth Month 2025 by honoring the vibrant energy and creative spirit of its young people. Echoing the courage and resilience of the 1976 Soweto and Sharpeville uprisings, where youth stood against apartheid’s injustices, today’s young generation is shaping a dynamic national identity through music, visual arts, literature, and storytelling. By blending heritage with modern expression, young South Africans are tackling social challenges, bridging communities, and redefining what it means to be South African. This feature celebrates their incredible achievements and explores meaningful ways to recognize their cultural impact throughout Youth Month.

Historical Context: The Cultural Roots of Resistance

The 1976 Soweto Uprising, sparked by students protesting apartheid’s oppressive education policies, and the Sharpeville protests against pass laws were not only political but cultural acts of defiance. Songs, poetry, and art became tools of resistance, amplifying the youth’s call for freedom. This legacy of creative expression continues in 2025, as young South Africans use culture to reclaim identities, heal historical wounds, and build a more inclusive future.

Achievements in Youth Culture

Music: Amapiano and Beyond

South African youth have propelled genres like Amapiano to global prominence, creating music that celebrates African rhythms while uniting audiences worldwide. Their work transcends entertainment, fostering cultural pride and economic opportunities.

Amapiano’s Global Rise:
- Achievement: Young artists like Kabza De Small, DJ Maphorisa, and Focalistic have transformed Amapiano into a global phenomenon. Originating in South Africa’s townships, the genre blends house, jazz, and kwaito, resonating with youth across continents.
- Impact: By 2025, Amapiano tracks have garnered over 5 billion streams on platforms like Spotify and Apple Music, with hits like “Adiwele” by Young Stunna topping international charts. The genre has created 10,000 jobs in production, DJing, and event management, per a 2024 SA Music Industry report.
- Global Reach: In 2024, Kabza De Small headlined Coachella, while Focalistic performed at Glastonbury, introducing African sounds to diverse audiences. Amapiano festivals in London and New York attracted 50,000 attendees, showcasing South African youth culture.
- Community Impact: In Soweto, youth-led Amapiano workshops train aspiring DJs annually, providing them with equipment and mentorship.
Emerging Genres:
- Achievement: Young musicians are innovating beyond Amapiano, with artists like Sjava and Shekhinah blending Afro-soul and R&B to address themes of identity and resilience.

Visual Arts: Painting Social Narratives

Young South African artists are using visual arts to confront social issues, celebrate diversity, and reclaim narratives, gaining recognition locally and globally.

Lady Skollie’s Provocative Art:
- Achievement: Laura Windvogel, also known as Lady Skollie, creates bold paintings and murals that address gender, sexuality, and colonialism. Her work challenges stereotypes and sparks dialogue.
- Impact: By 2025, her exhibitions will have drawn 100,000 visitors across galleries in Cape Town, London, and New York. Her 2024 mural in Johannesburg’s Maboneng Precinct, depicting women’s resilience, became a viral X post with 1 million views.
- Recognition: Lady Skollie won the 2022 Standard Bank Young Artist Award, cementing her influence. Her workshops in Khayelitsha have mentored a lot of young artists.
- Community Impact: Her art collectives provide free supplies to township youth, encouraging creative expression as a tool for healing.
Street Art Movements:
- Achievement: Youth-led collectives like the Bushfire Art Collective in Durban create murals celebrating African heritage and social justice.
- Impact: In 2024, the collective painted 50 murals across KwaZulu-Natal, transforming urban landscapes and attracting tourists annually.
- Community Impact: In Umlazi, the collective’s art classes engage youth, reducing gang involvement in participating communities, per local NGO reports.

Literature and Storytelling: Crafting New Narratives

Young authors and storytellers are reshaping South African literature, creating works that resonate with youth and preserve cultural heritage.

Mohale Mashigo’s Literary Impact:
- Achievement: Mohale Mashigo, a young novelist and comic writer, crafts stories exploring identity, history, and Afrofuturism. Her novel The Yearning celebrates black South African experiences.
- Impact: The Yearning sold 200,000 copies, inspiring youth to embrace their heritage. Her books are part of 500 school curricula, fostering pride in local stories.
- Recognition: Mohale won the 2024 Sunday Times Literary Award, with her work adapted into a Netflix series reaching 10 million viewers.
Spoken Word and Poetry:
- Achievement: Young poets like Koleka Putuma and Sindiswa Siwela use spoken word to address race, gender, and inequality. Putuma’s 2024 poetry collection, Collective Amnesia, became a bestseller.
- Impact: Their performances at festivals like the National Arts Festival drew 30,000 attendees in 2024.
- Community Impact: In Cape Town, Siwela’s poetry collective hosts open mics for the youth annually, creating safe spaces for expression and mental health support.

Digital Storytelling: Amplifying Voices

Youth are leveraging digital platforms to share stories, blending traditional and modern media to reach global audiences.

Youth-Led Podcasts:
- Achievement: Podcasts like Seat With, hosted by Lebo Rampedi, explore youth culture, history, and social issues. Launched in 2022, it features young creatives.
- Community Impact: The podcast sparks discussions, engaging thousands of young people in cultural dialogues.
Short Films and Animation:
- Achievement: Young filmmakers like 24-year-old Thandiwe Ngcobo create short films and animations celebrating South African stories.
- Impact: Her films, streamed on platforms like Showmax. Her animation studio in Pretoria employs young creatives.

Stories of Inspiration

Focalistic, 28: His Amapiano hits have made him a global ambassador for South African culture, mentoring young DJs in Pretoria.
Mohale Mashigo, 35: Her novels and comics empower youth to tell their stories, with her workshops producing published authors.
Thandiwe Ngcobo, 24: Her films celebrate township life, inspiring 200 young filmmakers in Gauteng to pursue animation.

Call to Action

This Youth Month, let’s celebrate South Africa’s young cultural pioneers by attending festivals, visiting galleries, and sharing their work. From Amapiano’s global beats to powerful murals and stories, these youth are shaping a vibrant, inclusive identity. Support their vision by volunteering, donating to arts programs, or amplifying their voices. The spirit of 1976 lives on in their creativity, let’s ensure it thrives.

The future is young, and it’s beautifully bold.

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