From isicathamiya and maskandi to Durban kwaito to deep house, gqom and hip-hop, there is no shortage of genres that help to make the sound of Durban whole. If there’s one thing influential DJ, record producer and Afrotainment label founder DJ Tira knows, however, it’s the rhythm of the city’s dance floors right now. For his Sounds of Durban mix, he focused on the frenetic energy of gqom, a sound whose popularity he helped to usher in. “Durban music changed the beat of South African rhythms: 100 BPM to 120-125 BPM,” DJ Tira says. “Most of the songs in the mix were composed in my studio with the artists I grew the Durban scene with. From the soulful sounds to the banging drums of gqom music. Music can unite nations, originality is the key. Gqom is back to take over the dance floors.”