South African selector DESIREE teams up with Emmanuel Jal for a multilingual Afro house cut released via Ninja Tune.
DESIREE’s latest release, 'Macho,' is a sophisticated exercise in cross-continental collaboration. Out now on Ninja Tune, the track pairs her specific Afro house architecture with the vocal range of South Sudanese-Canadian artist Emmanuel Jal.
The single is structurally rooted in traditional village call-and-response patterns, yet remains firmly focused on the floor. Jal’s contribution spans four languages—Kiswahili, Nuer, Arabic, and English—charting his personal trajectory from South Sudan to the UK and Canada.
Developing through live performances in London and Nairobi, the finished record follows a high-visibility season for DESIREE, including recent appearances at GALA and Circoloco. It marks another precise entry in her catalog following a notable remix of Nina Simone earlier this year.
'Macho' avoids the generic tropes of commercial Afro house, opting instead for a textured narrative style that honors its cultural origins while functioning in a modern club context.