Track of the Week "Pick Pocket" by RVWR (pronounced “roar”) is a slick and sexy percussive mix of special effects, loops, horns, echoes and rampant rhymes. If heavy, in-your-face bass is your thing, look no further. A bellowing radio edit of the track featuring Brooklyn rapper Shamon Cassette, it perfectly imbues the grimy feel of a street hustle. “I love a good 808 kick drum – if it makes my room rattle, even better,” RVWR (real name Lemuel Witbooi) says of his preferred musical leanings.
Writing this track was a really exciting process. I wrote 90% of it on a binge-writing session one night and only ended up sleeping at 4 AM. I went in to Red Bull Studios the following Tuesday and started recording with Shamon. He has tons of energy; I literally can’t remember how many takes we recorded. He wrote the lyrics on the couch behind me in studio while I was semi‐mixing and arranging the song – super productive! I’m really proud of the final track.
RVWR has spent many long years with his head buried in beatmaking software and used his acquired skills to bring Cape Town's bass scene to anything but a standstill. Like many producers, he began using FL Studio (Fruity Loops for those who are old enough) at the age of 16, not knowing what the result would be but trusting in the desire to produce groundbreaking music. Since then, having massacred the Mad Decent Block Party in Cape Town last year and various bass platforms such as Fiction, Uppercut’s Button Bashers, The Assembly and Cold Turkey, RVWR is on a blazing path to Design Indaba Music 2015, boasting appearances on 5fm’s ever popular Ultimix, a residency on Hectic Nine-9, and features on Mix Labs SA and Bombaada.
He joins Ghanaian rapper M.anifest and others on stage for Design Indaba Music's main event at Side Show on Thursday, 26 February. Design Indaba Music 2015 is a showcase of African talent that includes performances at Design Indabar from 25 to 27 February, as part of the annual Design Indaba Festival.
