After many years of writing songs in private, investment banker Sam Mokorosi is finally ready to share his music with the world.
“Some of these songs have been bubbling inside for more than 25 years,” he said.
“The impetus was my 20th wedding anniversary – I wrote this song as a gift to my wife, and I really wanted to release it. I thought, why not release more?”
That song, “Tell Your Mama We Made It”, marks the start of a five-single series that Mokorosi will release this year.
By day, Mokorosi navigates the complex worlds of strategy, risk and investment. By night, he steps into songwriting and vocals, presenting a side of himself few have seen.
“I’m on a journey to present myself in all my circles, whether church or high finance boardrooms,” he explained.
A product of Lesotho and South Africa’s Eastern Cape, Mokorosi was shaped by his surroundings. Early experiences, including witnessing the decay of public infrastructure, inspired songs like “Profit & Politics”.
He also fell in love at 16, a relationship that would endure and influence much of his music.
“We’re high school sweethearts, and there were dark days when it felt easy to give up,” he said.
“But we kept working at love. This song is a celebration that the bright days far outweigh the dark ones. It’s also an anthem for the resilience of the human spirit as we step into a new year.”
“Tell Your Mama We Made It” blends celebration and reflection, capturing quiet victories and personal milestones. Rather than releasing a traditional album, Mokorosi is rolling out a curated series of singles, each designed to tell a chapter of a larger story.
“I view this series as a camera lens zooming out,” he said. “It starts intimately close and ends with a panoramic view of where we come from.”
The series begins with the celebratory “Tell Your Mama We Made It”, followed by the reflective “How Much I Miss You” and then “Sunflower Girl”, timed for Valentine’s Day.
The focus then shifts outward with “Profit & Politics”, inspired by a visit to a neglected train station in Grahamstown, Eastern Cape, where Mokorosi saw the effects of greed and corruption firsthand.
The series concludes with “Motherwell”, an homage to the 1976 student uprisings in South West Townships, scheduled for release around Youth Day to mark resilience and hope in a nation still healing from historical scars.
“This collection bridges the gap between the man who loves his wife and the man who loves his country,” Mokorosi says. “It is my ‘Full Self.’”
Mokorosi credits his day job with teaching him the value of teamwork. “The right team makes the dream work,” he noted.
Producers, musicians and marketing professionals all contributed to the project, while his brother Kekente, a producer and DJ, is already working on remixes that will expand the sonic reach of the series.
