by Thando Mgobhozi
“All we want to do is spread good vibes and actually encourage and uplift our fellow Boss Ladies.”
We’re so excited and we just can’t hide it because there’s a new GIRL SQUAD in town!! Kelebogile Togoe and Palesa Sentso of Harmonic Squared are ready to take South African music scene by storm. How else can you not shine when you’re from the City Of Roses?
What started out as singing in Church together as friends quickly proceeded to performing covers of popular songs and now they perform all over Bloemfontein in all the well known spots.
Harmonic Squared have just released their first single titled Gone. They talk to us about that and more.
We are inspired by such a variety of people in the industry. We listen to people like H.E.R, SZA and Ari Lennox. And then with our artists it’s people like Nasty C, Boity and Shekhinah that inspire us. The list is quite long.
The creative process- differs with every song to be honest. Sometimes we’ll get a beat first and sometimes the lyrics come first. Plus being in the studio always gets the creative juices flowing.
An average day for Harmonic Squared is probably spending the day in studio just recording. Apart from that there’ll be rehearsals and preparing for performances.
There are really no hidden meanings in our songs. They are quite straightforward. All we want to do is spread good vibes and actually encourage and uplift our fellow Boss Ladies.
Our favorite part of the job is not being constrained by office walls, there’s no 9-5 and that means we can work anywhere, anytime on any given day. Plus we think it’s amazing to be paid for doing what you love. Don’t think we have a least favorite yet, the struggles are many but still wouldn’t trade it for anything.
On dealing with performance anxiety – Yes we have, performing is always nerve wrecking but the nerves usually come just before the performance but as soon as we get on stage it goes away. We use this anxiety as motivation because, the thought process is: we need to do our best. So we kinda put a bit of pressure on ourselves and that’s where the anxiety comes from. Once we get on stage and start having fun, it goes away.
The biggest problem we’ve faced is people not wanting to pay us back for our work. Musicians are taken for granted and are undervalued when it comes to their craft. You get people that would want us to entertain the guests at the event they are hosting and pay you pennies without taking into consideration the amount of time and work you put in to make a good performance.
We don’t limit ourselves to a certain genre. I think you can also tell with people we’re inspired by, but we love soul music so our sound has a lot of soul.
On coming up with their band name – We’re always harmonizing. It’s just something we’ve always been good at and there’s two of us in the group so that’s where the “Squared” comes from.
If they could change the industry – It would be amazing for huge artists to not only inspire upcoming artists like us but mentor us and give tips on how they succeed in this entertainment world. They always say, “Don’t give up on your dreams” but never go in on the 411 on actually thriving in the entertainment industry.
The single we released is entitled Gone. It’s about a lady who finally decides to leave a toxic relationship because she deserves better.
We’re releasing an EP in March 2020. What you can expect is a detailed description of our sound, all the songs are relatable and they best describe who we are as a duo.
Follow the duo on social media to keep up to date with their gig guide amongst other things;
Facebook: Harmonic Squared
Twitter: @harmonicSquared
