Lady Zamar is a South African singer/songwriter and house vocalist who melds soulful grit with an intimate storytelling style that unpacks the tumultuous complexities of romantic love. Born Yamikani Janet Banda, the house music diva hails from Thembisa and grew up in Mamelodi, Pretoria, cutting her teeth in local hip-hop ciphers, musical theater, and family worship activities. Her parents encouraged her life on the stage and eventually inspired her moniker, which is a Hebrew phrase for “to sing praise.” Cotton Candy, her 2015 collaborative debut with producer Junior Taurus, made a splash in South Africa’s dance music scene, and she soared even higher with solo LPs King Zamar (2017) and Monarch (2019), which are loaded with recurring themes of royalty and African empowerment. Lady Zamar has gradually opened up to the world with every subsequent release, candidly exploring her roots on “Piroti,” delving into the fallout of a failed relationship on hit single “Collide,” and reconstructing a shattered heart on the euphoric “This is Love.”