Bongi Archi, previously known as Bongi Mthombeni, has come a long was since he took part in Idols South Africa back in 2010. The star is currently starring in the pantomime Cinderella now on at the Joburg Theatre and as he continues to push himself creatively, he’s back to releasing music under a new name as he enters his new era.
Bongi makes his exciting return to the music space by dropping his highly-anticipated new single ‘Excuse Me’ – and it shows off his incredible vocal ability while telling a tale many may be familiar with.
Written by Bongi Archi in collaboration with Howie Combrink and Neil Engel from The Hit Lab, ‘Excuse Me’ a song about finding oneself in the friend zone. “This song came about while I was friend zoned for a long time while I was actually in love with this lady. That was the longest friend zone ever”, Bongi tells us. “I felt compelled to write about the experience. The song is very piano driven and very simplified so the story can be told and it sits easily on the listener’s ear.“
Bongi’s love of soul, pop, R&B and gospel shines through in the instrumentation and vocal delivery of the single and the authentic, emotional delivery makes for an incredible listening experience.
While developing the sound of the single, the initial reggae feel was changed to bring in Bongi’s love of piano when he sat down at the piano and played it dry for his team. They knew that was the new direction to go. Members of the public know of his vocal talents, but few realise his formidable skills on piano, drums and bass. Bongi wanted his introduction as a newcomer to the recording world, to reflect that. His compelling vocals round that out to deliver a single that will stick in your head once you’ve listened to it.
The song is the start of an exciting new chapter for Bongi who tells us why a name change made sense as he embarks on his new journey. “Nobody knows my middle name and after sitting down with my sister, she found the true meaning of my name and I was blown away,” he tells us. “I want to carry that with me in my career going forward., now as a recording artist. Embracing my culture and my roots. So, keeping ‘Bongi’ embraces my African name and ‘Archi ‘is new to the world’.”
Watch the exclusive music video premiere for ‘Excuse Me’ below and read more music news here.
