By Marley
Tidal Waves, the South African band that you most probably have seen before along your way — had a dance and forgot about it. Or remembered it. And now you are on a mission to find out more about them, or if they still even exist. Or you are here and wondering how the hell you ended up here.
You came dancing onto this little interview with Jacob ‘Jakes’ Wulana of Tidal Waves. We met years and years ago. If you walked past him in the street, you wouldn’t guess that he is the vocalist of this massive reggae band in SA. Or that he has played with some pretty big names and in some international countries. Or that he is just a humble guy, always wearing a smile.
Who is playing in Tidal Waves? Jakes on vocals and bass, Jaco Mans on lead guitar, Charlie Papasha on keys, Sphiwe Kubone on drums, Junior Wulana on rhythm keyboards and Tladi Kgara on rhythm guitar.
“The band started in February of 1998 and we are still going strong,” answered Jakes between our criss-cross messaging. I asked if they still play 100 shows a year.
“Wow! No, not anymore. I think the industry has changed a lot. We find ourselves living in a place that has no live venues and festivals.” It’s such a hard fact now after lockdown and the actual hardship of making a living — or survival, depending on the time of the month. When I mention that their music should be present on all stages, our talk goes down the AI path.
“The digital mentality has now brought AI into the mix. Things might be worse if we as artists don’t find our way now before dawn.” I do see and hear different opinions about how AI is being used in the music industry. I feel if you are an AI artist, how do you expect to play it live — without just plugging in a USB and pressing play?
Although they might be slightly absent from social media, I can recommend you have a listen to them on Spotify or watch some videos on YouTube floating around — a proper good ZA vibe.
I asked about when they started — February 1998. They came from the North West, but most of the band is based in Gauteng. I had to ask about the only white dude in the band, Jaco Mans. You might recognise him from Bok van Blerk’s band.
“We had gigs at this venue called Nile Crocodile in Pretoria. They were a rock band that always opened gigs for us at that place. So I liked his playing style of guitar, and we started chatting and jamming,” Jakes explains. I know of a lot of good stories and music chapters that started at the Nile Crocodile. And the talk moves onto the Afrikaans in their music.
Tidal Waves is one of the rare bands — if not the only one — who use a range of genres in their music. It is roots reggae, English, Afrikaans and mbaqanga. I asked Jakes what this is:
“Mbaqanga is a South African music genre that was derived from township jive music. That’s one of the styles we mix with blues, rock and reggae.” Some of their lyrics are also in Setswana and Tshivenda. I can say that it doesn’t matter if you don’t understand the words, as long as you understand the music.
Tidal Waves will always remind me of sunsets at beaches and festivals where I had the pleasure of seeing them so many times. We talk a little about Avontoer, and I asked what the most memorable venue or country was (they’ve played in a few). Without hesitation, the answer comes — Oppikoppi. Tidal Waves have headlined the dust festival a few times, and from what I’ve seen on video, it does testify to their message. I would love to see them again in Nelsparta, but I think the genre might go over a few heads and give one-minded impressions — although that is not what Tidal Waves are. They were multiple influencers before camera phones and social media were even a thing.
“Lekker Lekker Dans” is probably their most famous song, and the talk moves onto where the inspiration came from.
“‘Lekker Lekker Dans’ was influenced by us as a band seeing that an Afrikaans crowd deserved a song too, because we had so many languages in our music. So we came with a party song that makes everyone dance.” And you do jive on it — cracking knees and all. Other must-listens are “Afrika”, “Kia Ora” (the first one I remember hearing), “Vas Trap” and “Rapolotiki”.
They have played around Southern Africa — Eswatini, Mozambique — as well as Europe, America and New Zealand. They have been the backing band at the South African Music Awards and were the supporting band for Ziggy Marley. He is the son (one of three) of the legendary Bob Marley, and he played here in 2010 during the FIFA World Cup. I think the honour was all ours, Mr Marley, that you picked such a cool band.
Tidal Waves should be on your watch list for Misty Waters 2026 — and in fact wherever you can see them. I promise two things will happen: you’ll have a good time, and you will Lekker Lekker dans.
