Amount spent on AKA’s ‘The World Is Yours’ music video revealed
Vth Season founder Raphael Benza has revisited one of the boldest moments in South African hip hop, revealing how much was spent on AKA’s 2017 music video for The World Is Yours.
Speaking to SA Hip Hop Mag, Benza reflected on the scale of the production, which was filmed in Phuket, Thailand, during AKA’s celebrated “Supa Mega” era.
At the time, splurging R275,000 on a local hip hop video felt unprecedented.
“The World Is Yours video. Back then, I thought that was the biggest budget, which was 275,000. I think it was the biggest budget,” Benza said.
What began as a romantic trip for AKA and his then-partner Bonang Matheba evolved into a full production shoot.
A compact team, including the director and a small crew, travelled to Thailand, with Bonang also making a cameo appearance in the glossy visual.
For Benza, the risk felt justified from the moment he heard the song’s demo.
“The first time I had the demo of The World Is Yours, I thought this is our song. We’re going to make back the R275,000. We’re going to make the money back because the song is that good. It has to have a video that looks as good as it.”
According to Benza, the investment was recouped multiple times over through streaming revenue, video views, brand impact and the record’s enduring popularity.
The lush visuals complete with luxury poolside shots and sweeping beach scenes, matched the track’s triumphant tone and reinforced AKA’s larger-than-life persona.
Directed by Alessio Bettocchi alongside AKA, with Prince Costinyo serving as executive producer, the video was released in early 2017 under Sony Music Entertainment Africa and Vth Season.
It quickly racked up significant views and has since been regarded as a benchmark for what South African artists could achieve when aiming for global standards.
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