Dj Scurl making major moves in music

Calvin Ndlela (27), well-known on stage as Dj Scurl is making waves in the local music and entertainment space.

The self-made disc-spinner from Ratanda township in the Sedibeng District, whose journey from the streets to the stage is as inspiring as his mixing.

He said his uncle was a DJ in the early 2000’s in a phase where equipment for this career was rare to find within their neighbourhood.

“My uncle was one of the few djs who had his own equipment.

“Whenever he was not around I would sneak into his room and start pressing things I did not know until he eventually decided to teach me how to Dj. That was in 2010.

“I was inspired by the likes of Dj Kent and Shimza. I used to download their mixes on radio and try and redo what they were doing at the time.

“I started off playing Commercial House music in 2012 and I started playing around with gqom and hip-hop by mixing the two genre’s together,” explained Ndlela.

Ndlela’s style of play was unique and that is how his career took off. He started getting gig’s when he was doing grade nine.

“ I had to wait for my grandparents to sleep so I could sneak out and attend some of my gigs.

“My very first mix, Scurls Mix 3 made me very popular. By the time I had a connect in KZN who would give me exclusive tracks that were not released at the time.

“I also started making my own events at the age of 15 and was called Students Xplosion which also made my name popular because I would make sure I had the best set at my event,” he added.

Ndlela is now an Amapiano artist and has shared stages with popular artists such as
Kabza de Small, MFR Souls in 2014.

After completing high-school Ndlela decided to start producing and joined a duo called The Moverz where they became a trio producing AfroHouse music.

“We released about eight singles together and two projects that we ended up selling in
2018.

“That is when I decided to switch genre’s and start afresh with amapiano while hosting my annual birthday celebrations which also became big with the likes of Busta 929 and Mpura on my lineup,” Ndlela mentioned.

He has furthermore played as a resident DJ at many local clubs in Ratana such as eCarwashlifestyle, Sols Cafe , Café de nuevo and many more.

In 2022 his career gained an international gig in Mozambique where he strictly played Amapiano.

In excitement, he cited that he believes that he managed to represent SA quite well while in Mozambique.

“2024 I decided to start making events again but I wanted something different not the usuall club groove but something rare.

“That is when I came up with iDaytime eRoundini which is a street,fashion, and food market event that also went beyond my expectations.

“The event aims to empower local entrepreneurs, uplift local brands, businesses and the youth trying to navigate its way into adulthood,” he said.

During the festive season, iDaytime eRoundini (also known as eRoundini) became the number one weekend gig in Ratanda , attracting hundreds of party goers from the township and surrounding areas.

Ndlela concluded by highlighting that he aims to reach bigger heights through his music while making an impactful contribution to young people around him.