Zenzele Mthembu-Salter

Zenzele Mthembu-Salter is a Cape Town–born, Amsterdam–based jazz bassist and composer who has established himself as a rising voice in the European jazz and improvisation scene. With his debut album ‘Future Kwela’, he blends traditional South African rhythms—such as kwela, maskandi, and township jive—with contemporary influences from jazz, hip-hop, gospel, and house. Zenzele is the leader of the project “Future Kwela,” which aims to reinterpret South African musical heritage through a modern lens.