Nanette: “‘The Waiting Room’ Represents Patience & Waiting On Your Blessings Even If It’s Uncomfortable”

Nanette’s latest EP ‘The Waiting Room’ is one of the best releases of 2024. The project represents a period in the artist’s life where she was forced to wait. 

In the Q&A below, she breaks down the meaning behind the project, working with Tellaman, Nasty C, Blxckie, and other topics. 

Can you take us through the title of ‘The Waiting Room’.  

So the title ‘The Waiting Room’ represents the period of time in my life where I was waiting on so many different things. In the moment, it felt like nothing was going right or things were just stalling all the time but I think, in retrospect, I realised that wait was so important because now the results are so much sweeter, the music is so much sweeter and all of that. ‘The Waiting Room’ represents exactly that, patience and waiting on your blessings even if it’s uncomfortable. 

What was it like working with Nasty C and Tellaman?

A dream. If anyone is from Durban… even if you not from Durban, you will understand. As a kid from Durban who grew up listening to them, it was a dream. Beyond that they are such cool, easy people to work with and they not typical arrogant superstars who will treat you less, no. It felt like second nature and natural working with both and I’ve learnt the most talented people are very quiet about their talent and once you get in the studio with Tella and Nasty, whatever you thought and admired triples.

You mentioned that ‘Talk 2 Me’ was originally Blxckie’s song, can you tell us about how that came about?

We were actually at a songwriting camp in 2022 for Universal Publishing. I have to say publishing chile… but anyways. We were at a songwriting camp and I remember I kinda didn’t have a place that I felt like I was comfortable to record here. So, I remember my A&R had to put me in a session and the session was a Blxckie session. It was the middle of the session and I was kinda hesitant cause Blxckie had already started the song so I didn’t wanna seem like, ooh, ndiyatheleka, I’m that girl just coming over and taking over, no. But the bro was super chilled. When I came, he was already playing with the hook and melodies so we decided to write the hook together from there he told me to just jump on the song. 

Jumped on the song, it was super fire, the producer loved it. Shoutout to Bangers From France. From there, it sat for over a year because no one could drop it. Blxckie’s schedule was too busy, my schedule wasn’t making scene…. waiting room… So, eventually he just said, ‘yo bro we need this song out whenever you’re ready to drop it, please do drop it’ but I was waiting on him to drop it because it was his song so yeah shoutout to him.

Did you already know that you’re going to drop ‘Talk 2 Me’ on the project?

Even during the show, I was saying it’s so crazy that this project is even out because this project shouldn’t exist, you know. I think that the way things came about was also organic and I’m very grateful of the way it came out that way, but to answer that, no, I did not plan this or intend for it to be a part of ‘The Waiting Room’. It was actually supposed to be a stand-alone single but when we were doing tracklisting and figuring out what we wanna put in the EP, it ended up making sense just cause of how people loved the song and how much of a classic it is. I feel like it’s an R&B classic so we decided to put it on there.

Your music has that old school R&B feel, why is it that you prefer that sound?

I think it’s 'cause I love that sound so much, I think it’s a very nice feeling to remember something you once enjoyed. That feeling of nostalgia, I think it’s something that everybody loves and so that’s why old school music is gonna get people right because nostalgia is a feeling you cannot buy, you can’t fake that. That beautiful memory in your mind you can’t fake that so yeah that’s why I love that type of sound. It makes me feel like I’m back home in Durban. Durban has a very strong old school Hip-Hop and R&B culture especially from where I come from in Sydenham. Everyone’s playing Biggie in the back of their boot. You know those people who have their speakers in their boot. So, I come from that culture that really celebrated classic music regardless of what time it came out. 

Who were you listening to then? Give us your top 3. 

Surprisingly, Luther Vandross. 

This other white boy group called West Life, they’re not really R&B, but if you know West Life, you know. 

And then, ‘Cater To You’… that album by Destiny’s Child and honorary mention was ‘Velvet Rope’ by Janet Jackson.

Weren’t you sad that she couldn’t come to SA? 

I cried when they announced that she’s coming  so what do you think I did when I found out she’s not coming? I hung it all up.

So you do Amapiano so well, what are your plans for that side of you?

Hectic. That’s a good question, I don’t think I have plans for that side of me. I think that I’m still enjoying experimenting and I’m still enjoying figuring out what I enjoy the most when it’s not R&B but I think that there will always be ‘Piano Nette, and I will always drop Piano releases. However, I don’t have any plans. I mean I have been sitting on a little Piano EP , eish please don’t bully me for it now but yeah, maybe who knows maybe in the future, angazi.

Lastly, what do you think SA R&B is missing?

You gonna get me in trouble here but vocal coaches. Please tell them I wasn’t tryna come for anyone. I need a vocal coach too. 

Stream ‘The Waiting Room’ by Nanette below: