Malkerns – Uncle Waffles made her long-awaited debut at the MTN Bushfire Festival in Malkerns, delivering a performance that lived up to the enormous expectations that had been building around her appearance at one of Southern Africa’s most celebrated cultural events.
The DJ and dancer, who made history as the first female Amapiano act to perform at Coachella, has also headlined world-renowned stages, graced the cover of Forbes and earned a co-sign from Beyoncé, placing the sound of Southern Africa firmly at the centre of the global stage.
@swazi24online Uncle Waffles made a sensational MTN Bushfire debut, delivering a powerful and thrilling performance that had the crowd dancing from start to finish. The energy, the vibes, and the unforgettable moments lit up the stage in true Bushfire style. #UncleWaffles #MTNBushfire #BushfireFestival #Eswatini #Amapiano ♬ original sound – swazi24
Speaking to journalists after her set, including Swazi24, Uncle Waffles reflected on the defining moment that changed her life and launched her career. 
“The biggest is the obvious one, my viral moment. That was a show we did for free and I posted that 22-flip and I went to bed and I woke up and my life changed,” she said.
She admitted that the pressure going into Friday night’s performance was real, and that she had arrived at the festival grounds two hours early to rehearse and get her head right.
“The expectation was really high. I did feel a lot of pressure. I did want to make sure that coming back and doing such a big stage, I was really sure. We were actually here two hours earlier practicing, really rehearsing and really being confident that I wanted to shine,” she said.
When asked to describe the performance in three words, she struggled to keep it brief.
“It felt warm. That’s not even two words. Okay, warm. It’s a whole sentence. Yes, it felt really, really warm. Everyone, it felt like everyone was just excited, and I haven’t felt that,” she said.
Swazi24 asked her about her upcoming tour with Asake, and she said she hoped the experience would help win over Afrobeats audiences to Amapiano.
“I feel like the Afrobeats audience is getting warmed up to Amapiano, but they are not solid fans. So hopefully this tour solidifies the massive borders so we can have similar numbers as Afrobeats. Afrobeat is one of the leading genre in the world. So I would really love this tour, I’m able to really convince people that Afrobeat, Amapiano, it’s magnificent for both genre” she said.
On what it means to her to be celebrated as a product of Southern Africa, she said the journey required a particular kind of resilience.
“It means really, when you’re creating something, you need to really be strong. You need to really be stern in what your creativity is. It made me want to find more. I really wanted to show everybody that it’s possible,” she said.
She closed with a message for young people chasing their dreams.
“As you pursue your dreams, it’s going to feel really uncomfortable. You’re going to sometimes feel like you don’t know what the right path is, like it’s actually not working. But just fake it until you make it. Just like I said in the beginning, that one show I did changed my life,” she said.
