Bokani Dyer, presents his new project Radio Sechaba, release through Brownswood Recordings.

“Sechaba means nation in Setswana and I had long been thinking about what makes a nation, in relation to the current moment in South Africa, and how to capture that in my own music,” says the critically acclaimed pianist, composer and producer.

That this multi award-winning artist has created a new project around nation building, unity and identity is no surprise. Dyer was born in 1986 in Gaborone, Botswana, where many artists from South Africa, including his father, musician Steve Dyer, were living in exile. His family moved back to South Africa when he was a child where, as the son of a black mother from Botswana and a white South African father, he has long been interrogating issues of identity and nation building.

Radio Sechaba is being released through Brownswood Recordings – the independent record label founded by DJ and broadcaster Gilles Peterson. Started in 2006, it’s a platform for new artists and music creatives, as well as an outlet for established acts to do something different. The label has long championed independent, eclectic music and Dyer’s signing to the label is another important step in his music career.

“Brownswood Recordings is the perfect label for Radio Sechaba,” says Dyer. “Gilles is known for being a global tastemaker who is very open in terms of his approach to music.To be joining Gilles’ label is very much a dream come true for me.”

Dyer’s recent career highlights include playing at the 2022 North Sea Jazz Festival in Rotterdam, Netherlands, being part of the South African Songbook (2019) at the Lincoln Centre USA, London Jazz Festival (2015), headlining the Cape Town International Jazz Festival (2015) and an artistic residency at the Bird’s Eye jazz club in Basel, Switzerland (2014).