- Where chart momentum meets cultural relevance
- Celebrating the artists and genres that owned the year
- Who was number 1 the most…
- Understanding South Africa’s cultural engine in motion
Where the charts meet the drama, the data meets the culture, and the music meets the moment.
South Africa’s 2025 music scene didn’t just move, it erupted. Fans streamed, Shazamed, replayed, reposted, and re-lived their favourite tracks with the kind of passion that turns songs into cultural events.
Where chart momentum meets cultural relevance, CSA’s SA Chart Pulse is not just about streams but where fans discover, connect and keep coming back to music, across numerous platforms.
Released every Friday, SA Chart Pulse assigns each track a Pulse Score, based on audience engagement across Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, Shazam, Deezer and South African radio. The Pulse score is calculated as follows: #1 gets 100 points, #100 gets 1. Higher scores mean bigger impact across platforms.
Most #1 Position: Kabza De Small
The King of Amapiano kept his crown shining. Kabza dominated the #1 spot, topping the chart 7 separate weeks (between late July and late September), more than any other artist in 2025. His pulse scores during those peaks ranged from 823 to 936, reflecting consistently high airplay and Apple Music performance, proving that when he drops, the country listens. “Ngyozama” didn’t just chart, it occupied the chart like prime real estate.
Fastest Climber: Mzukulu
The shockwave nobody saw coming. Maskandi artist, Mzukulu, blasted from outside the Top 10 straight to #1 in a single week, one of the biggest leaps SA Chart Pulse has recorded to date. A cultural meteor strike , his weekly Pulse Score rose from the mid‑hundreds to 1 322, a ~231 % increase week‑on‑week, fuelled by Shazam searches and YouTube views.
Biggest Breakthrough: Olivia Dean
UK pop-soul artist, Olivia Dean, became SA’s unexpected sweetheart. She first entered the Top 10 on 26 September at #9 (Pulse Score ≈ 438). Over the next six weeks she climbed to #6, then #3, and finally held the #1 spot for three consecutive weeks in November. Her Pulse Score peaked at 895 on 21 November. From her debut to her peak, she achieved a ~70 % increase. Emotional, soulful, and cross-platform magnetic, Olivia Dean delivered the kind of rise that stars are made of.
Highest Heat Score Entry: Taylor Swift
No one brought the fire like Tay Tay. With a jaw-dropping 2,147 Heat Score Entry, the highest single‑week total in 2025. She spent three weeks at #1 in October and November, highlighting Global fandom + multi-platform dominance = heat score history.
Most Impactful New Genre: K-Pop (HUNTR/X)
K-Pop didn’t just tap into South Africa, it plugged in and powered up. With HUNTR/X repeatedly cracking the Top 5, peaking at #2 on 19 September with a Pulse Score of approximately 732, and re-entering with force. They remained in the Top 10 for six weeks and consistently ranked highest on Deezer and Shazam. The genre proved its “global sound-local love” fusion is officially a South African obsession.
Breakthrough Genre of 2025: Maskandi
Call it a cultural awakening. Maskandi roared into the mainstream as Mzukulu hit #1 with a Pulse Score of 1 322 (31 Oct), and Nkeshemba’s Top‑10 runs achieved up to 462 points (28 Nov). With major Shazam traction and unstoppable YouTube momentum, Maskandi became the year’s most emotional, identity-driven breakthrough.
Most Cross-Platform Resonance: Jazzwrld
“uValo” wasn’t just a hit, it was everywhere. Shazam spikes, Apple Music loyalty, TikTok loops, playlist love. In December his Pulse Score jumped from 162 to 410 week‑on‑week, a 153 % surge, illustrating his cross‑platform appeal. Jazzwrld owned the multi-platform universe like few others.
Biggest Chart Pulse Rivalry: Kabza De Small vs. Jazzwrld
The battle of the year.
Kabza: the stable king with unstoppable radio + streaming power. He recorded a season‑best Pulse Score of 936 and held #1 for 7 weeks.
Jazzwrld: the digital disruptor with Shazam-hungry momentum. He achieved a top Pulse Score of 837 and spent 5 weeks at #1.
Together, Kabza and Jazzwrld represent the tension shaping modern SA music: Heritage vs experimentation; Stability vs disruption and Community-rooted sound vs hybrid digital evolution. These were two giants, two genres, one unforgettable chart war.
Understanding South Africa’s cultural engine in motion
This is the new frontier of cultural measurement: cross-platform resonance as proof of cultural belonging. It tells an important story about who owned 2025, who surprised the country, and which genres signalled deeper identity shifts within South African music culture.
It made it more than just a music year. It was a cultural storyline, and the fans were the writers.