Electronic Music in South Africa: Ultra South Africa Marks 10 Years of Shaping Sound and Community
As ULTRA South Africa celebrates 10 years of hosting the biggest electronic music festival in the country, we sat down with artists to talk about what ULTRA South Africa means to them, the influence of SA music on global sounds and what inspires them.
The second in this series looks at how ULTRA South Africa has fostered a diverse and inclusive line-up year after year.
As ULTRA South Africa celebrates more than a decade of defining the electronic music landscape, the festival continues to raise the bar—not just with its world-class production, but with a lineup that reflects the future of dance music: diverse, unapologetic, and always ahead of the curve.
Among the early visionaries who set the stage is Lady Lea, a longtime ULTRA performer who founded Divas on Decks—a DJ agency and mentorship initiative that supports up-and-coming female artists. Through her legacy, generations of women have found a place in the scene and a future in the booth.
Ms Cosmo, Claudia Lovisa and more were just a few women to carry the torch across the formative years, until powerhouse DJ Zinhle captivated the Johannesburg Main Stage with her signature blend of classic beats and modern energy in 2020.
Global sensation Uncle Waffles electrified ULTRA South Africa in 2023, proving once again that star power, skill, and originality know no gender. Her dynamic Amapiano sets, paired with viral visuals and trend-setting fashion, offer a holistic expression of the culture where she continuously breaks stereotypes set by men. Joining the ranks of these game-changers is Desiree, an intersex woman redefining Afro House and melodic Techno on the global stage. Her precise, emotionally resonant sets are winning acclaim far beyond South African borders, while her visibility offers inspiration for others whose stories are rarely told.
Sio, the soulful singer and producer, delivered a vocal-led performance that brought emotive storytelling to the fore, in a rare performance in 2024. With more stages came more opportunities to shine, and at the Club House, DBN Gogo lit up the crowd with her unmatched command of Amapiano, a genre that she continues to pioneer the world over.
These DJs, producers, and curators aren’t just making music—they’re shaping movements. With skills that extend into label ownership, visual art, community-building, and international trendsetting, they are multi-hyphenate leaders of a cultural renaissance. Long after the music ends, their impact continues to ripple through fashion, dance, social media, and global media—outlasting many of their contemporaries.
ULTRA South Africa recognises that the global dance stage is expanding—and South Africa is not just a player, but a leader. The festival is proud to champion homegrown excellence and ensure that the world continues to tune into what’s next. ULTRA’s stance on diversity has moved representation from merely a checkbox to representation as cultural leadership. By continuing to book groundbreaking talent from across the gender spectrum, racial identities, and underground scenes, ULTRA is embracing the reality that the future of dance music is diverse, African, queer, and female-led—and they’re making space for that future on the biggest stages in the world.
True to house and electric music’s roots, in South Africa, electronic music isn’t just heard—it’s felt, seen, and lived every single day in so many ways… and at ULTRA South Africa we get to see all there is to offer as the music moves us forward together.
ULTRA South Africa 2025
Cape Town - Friday, 9 May 2025 at The Ostrich
Johannesburg - Saturday, 10 May 2025 at Expo Centre at Nasrec
