Lordkez Celebrates Second SAMA Win: “This Is Only the Beginning.” South African R&B and soul artist Lordkez has once again etched her name into the country’s music history books, securing the Best R&B/Soul Album award at the 32nd South African Music Awards (SAMA32) for her project You, Me & The 90’s.
The win, announced during the awards held at Sun City, marks a rare back-to-back achievement. In 2024, the Kimberley-born singer took home the same honour for her debut album, Testament. This means that she is the first artist in the 2020s to win the category twice on separate occasions.
In an Instagram post shared shortly after the victory, Lordkez expressed pure disbelief and deep gratitude. “Can’t believe I won a South African award for best Rnb & Soul album …. Again?!” she wrote. “The little girl inside me is so overjoyed. Lord knows I work really really really hard and fight so many silent battles. This is only the beginning for me, and I’m so grateful to all of you who show me so much love & support. I’m ever grateful and ever thankful always.”
You, Me & The 90’s, released in March 2025, was a deliberate return to the sounds that shaped her. Drawing from classic R&B that filled Sundays in Floors Township, Kimberley, where family gathered while her grandmother cooked soul food, the album blends nostalgia with a distinctly modern South African sensibility. Produced, mixed and mastered by longtime collaborator Jordan Klem, the project features no guest appearances and prioritises emotion, storytelling and creative freedom over trends.
Lordkez has steadily built a reputation as one of the most compelling voices in the new wave of African R&B. From early projects that experimented with alternative sounds and hip-hop influences to the more focused, retro-tinged direction of recent work, she has carved out a space that feels both personal and widely resonant. Hits like the multi-platinum “Aweh” (and its remix with Cassper Nyovest) have further cemented her presence on local charts and stages.
n her post, the artist made it clear that the award is not a destination but a checkpoint. The “silent battles” she referenced, the private struggles that rarely make the highlight reels, sit alongside the public milestones. Her message to fans carried both vulnerability and quiet determination: the work continues, and this is only the beginning.
For a young woman from Kimberley who once sang in church, taught herself piano, and steadily built her craft through late nights and independent hustle, the second SAMA win feels like validation of a journey still unfolding.
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