In a music landscape where storytelling is becoming as important as sound, Internet Athi stands as a compelling new voice. For our interview, we met at Flatmountain Coffee Shop in the heart of Woodstock, a space known among creatives as a quiet incubator for ideas and milestones. It’s a fitting backdrop for Internet Athi, whose music reflects the same intentionality and thoughtfulness. With three singles already under his belt, he is poised to release his debut album, Polymorphism, a project set to fuse South African jazz, neo-soul, neo-R&B, and elements of pop into a sound that is both rich and rare in the local landscape.
Raised in Khayelitsha and shaped by one of South Africa’s largest church communities, where brass bands and choir traditions are a daily presence, music was always part of his world. Yet his journey was far from linear: Computer Science studies at UCT, five years in tech working on AI and language preservation, the structured discipline of his upbringing, and the profound loss of his father all contributed to a path defined as much by reflection as by rhythm.
What sets Internet Athi apart is his rare combination of technical precision and emotional depth. He brings soul and softness, interrogating masculinity, love, grief, and faith with honesty and nuance. South Africa has few male musicians who can navigate that space, charged yet tender, deliberate yet instinctive. Polymorphism will reflect his ability to translate personal experience into music that is both intimate and universal, while also revealing the architecture behind his artistry, the careful construction of his songs, his band, and the career infrastructure that supports them.
In this candid conversation, Internet Athi reflects on his journey, the conceptual ideas behind his music, and what it means to create with intention.
GLAMOUR: Why did you choose this place for our interview?
Internet Athi: I chose this spot because it marks a turning point in my career. It’s where I had my first meeting with my publisher, Nikilitha from Copton Music, early last year. Up until that moment, I had been doing everything independently. I wasn’t thinking about publishing or the formal side of music, I was just creating. That meeting shifted my mindset. It made me see music not just as passion, but as work. real work.
It was also around that time that I made the decision to leave my 9–5. I realised that everything I had learned in school and in tech was feeding directly into how I build my music career. This place represents the beginning of that transition, from independent creative to intentional artist. So it felt right to come back here for this conversation.
GLAMOUR: Tell us about your background, where you’re from and your family dynamic growing up.
Internet Athi: I was born in Khayelitsha, Site B. Both my parents are originally from Cofimvaba in the Eastern Cape. They had my older siblings there before moving to Khayelitsha, where I was born. I lived quite a nomadic life growing up because we moved around a lot. I attended primary school in Khayelitsha, then went to Ubulumko High School before being accepted into the Centre of Science and Technology in Grade 10. After that, I enrolled at the University of Cape Town to study Computer Science, although I later dropped out. My upbringing was structured and disciplined. Both my parents were strict, but there was also care and intention in how they raised us.
GLAMOUR: When or how did music find you?
Internet Athi: Music found me in stages. Writing came first, poetry, and essays. In matric, my English teacher encouraged me to read more and once asked me to write an essay on the word “Black.” I ended up reading it at assembly, and that was the first time I felt the power of expression publicly. That same year, we went on a school trip to a liberal arts college in the North West, where we were scheduled to have debates with other science-focused schools. But the highlight for me wasn’t the debates, it was a performance by a Johannesburg-based slam poet. I hadn’t known his work before, but seeing him perform sparked something in me.
GLAMOUR: What was the driving force behind pursuing music as a career?
Internet Athi: I studied Computer Science and worked in tech for five years after university. My first job was in software development. But music kept pulling at me. The definitive shift came after my father passed away. That loss forced me to reflect deeply. I realised my parents didn’t necessarily want a specific profession for me, they wanted a plan. So I created one. I set five-year goals and began testing my music seriously. Then, I saw that there wasn’t just an audience, but a genuine connection forming.
GLAMOUR: You have a striking stage name. Tell us about it?
Internet Athi: I always knew I wanted to use my real name. My music is rooted in my lived experiences, whether I’m speaking about love, politics, or social commentary, it’s always coming from my lens.
The “Internet” part reflects how I distribute my work and connect with people. Much of my audience and community was built online. I spend a lot of time there, learning, sharing, and engaging with fans and friends.
GLAMOUR: You’ve recently started “Offline Athi ” What is that about?
Internet Athi: It began shortly after meeting my publisher. She appreciated how I had structured the backend of my music, automating bookings, managing distribution, handling admin.
Because I don’t have a traditional label structure, I’ve had to learn everything myself. Offline Athi is where I document that journey. It’s not about presenting myself as an expert, it’s about sharing the learning process in real time. I’m interested not only in performing, but eventually becoming an executive in the industry.
GLAMOUR: After the success of your first single “WENA” in 2024, you took your time before releasing another track. Was that intentional?
Internet Athi: Yes. Even if no one liked “WENA,” I liked it. That was the point. I didn’t want to chase virality. I wanted to build something I was proud of. I needed time to refine my composition, my voice, and my understanding of arrangement and curation. I’m very particular. If I cringe at it, I won’t release it.
GLAMOUR: Can you tell us about your upcoming debut album "Polymorphism" what can we expect?
Internet Athi: The album is currently an 11-track project. It explores relationships and different forms of love. The concept is inspired partly by Computer Science, specifically polymorphism. In programming, polymorphism refers to one entity existing in multiple forms.
I use love as that entity. Love appears as romantic love (eros), friendship (philia), family love (storge), and universal love (agape). As a son, friend, partner and brother, I experience different expressions of myself, sometimes contradictory, yet they all form who I am. This project also feels like my quiet graduation. I once saw myself as an academic. If I couldn’t be one within an institution, then I could be one through music. The album addresses that incomplete degree while applying its concepts to emotional and social realities.
GLAMOUR: What was the hardest song to make on the album?
Internet Athi: The hardest song was the second track, dedicated to my father’s passing. I split it into two parts. The first carries his birth name, a name he struggled to accept because of its meaning. Like many of our parents during apartheid, he adopted an English name, Lucas, which appears on his ID.
The song opens with a voice note from his funeral, my sister singing, before transitioning into the body of the track. That was heavy. It meant allowing listeners into one of the most vulnerable moments of my life.
I reflect on his lineage, his siblings who passed before him, and the guilt I carry because I was on my way to see him when he passed. There’s also anger at systemic failures, hospitals lacking adequate resources. I address that more directly on another track titled “Enough.”
His passing in 2022 stayed with me throughout the project. I felt I owed him the honour of beginning the album there.
GLAMOUR: What other musicians or albums that influenced this project?
Internet Athi: Funny enough I created a playlist for my band, "songs I wish I had written". I told them not to analyse, just to listen. Also Daniel Caesar’s Freudian influenced me deeply, not just sonically, but conceptually. I also revisited South African greats like Stompie Mavi, and Zim Ngqawana, also the likes of Zoe Modiga, Mandisi Dyantyis, Manana, there’s something special and beautiful that's rooted in their work. I grew up listening to Ringo Madlingozi with my family, those early influences shaped me more than I realised.
GLAMOUR: Tell us how you put together your band and the role of live instruments in your music.
Internet Athi: Building my band was all about trust and chemistry, the music only works when we understand each other. It started before I released Wena, with musicians from Kujenga, overtime their schedules shifted, so I recruited new members for a Durban show. The connection was instant, and they became my permanent ensemble.
We expanded further for recording the full album, adding more members. Each musician brings soul, intuition, and a human energy that digital production can’t replicate. The Internet Athi experience isn’t complete without that live band energy.
GLAMOUR: Live music is an evolving entity. Where do you centre yourself?
Internet Athi: I love recording because I can architect a feeling intentionally. But live performance teaches humility. Audiences interpret songs in ways I can’t predict. I think of singles as short stories, albums as essays. A live show is the audience’s interpretation of that essay.
I believe in live band culture deeply. Bands create employment, community, and collective energy. I see myself contributing to a future where live performance is valued not as nostalgia, but as the present and future.
GLAMOUR: How has Cape Town shaped your artistry, and would you consider moving to Johannesburg?
Internet Athi: I’m open to spending time in Johannesburg, especially for economic reasons. But Cape Town is deeply embedded in who I am. There’s something about the pace here, the intentionality, the relationships, the metaphysical energy, that shapes the music. I don’t judge artists who move for opportunity. Sometimes it’s necessary.
For me, highlighting that I’m independent and from Cape Town is important. I want decision-makers to recognise that talent exists here too.
GLAMOUR: How do you stay on top of your mental health?
Internet Athi: It’s ongoing. I run, journal, call home, reach out to friends. I’m sober when creating and performing because I want to be present. Exposure changes the body and mind, so grounding is important. I’m also open to therapy. Artists need real tools to protect themselves.
GLAMOUR: When your music reaches the community you grew up in, what do you want it to do for the little boy or girl growing up with limited opportunities?
Internet Athi: I want them to know that Khayelitsha produces some of the best minds in the world, just like anywhere else. Where you’re from should never limit how far you can go. Representation matters. When I was younger, people visiting our schools made a difference. I want to be that person now.
It’s also about reconciliation. Many of us leave and don’t return because we haven’t processed what growing up there does to us mentally. I want to return consciously, not just physically.
GLAMOUR: Lastly! What do you want out of your life’s journey?
Internet Athi: I want to express how I see the world, honestly. I want the freedom to change and to admit when I’ve changed. Beyond the big dreams, I’m actually simple. If my basic needs are met, shelter, food, mobility, then I can create. When survival isn’t the primary focus, you can be who you truly are.
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