What happens when a South African hit takes over the world and becomes a source of joy during a pandemic? This is the story of how Master KG’s Jerusalema made the world dance.

On 16 August 2020, South African finance minister Tito Mboweni became the latest person to try his hand at the global phenomenon. He joined the #JerusalemaChallenge, and shared his video dancing in his home. By the time Minister Mboweni joined the #JerusalemaChallenge the song had garnered 89 million views on Youtube, less than a year after its release.

Limpopo-born hitmaker Master KG, real name Kgoagelo Moagi, says when he started making music he just wanted to make people dance. He never imagined that he would be making the whole world dance. “I was happy to hear my music played at taverns or on radio … and I never imagined I would make money from it or be on TV.”

Jerusalema is not Master KG’s first big hit; he is a regular on South African charts. In 2018, he enjoyed huge success with his hit Skeleton Move, which was voted the 2018 SABC Summer Song of the Year (meaning it received the most public votes across the participating SABC stations). Skeleton Move also bagged him an Afrimma 2018 award for Best Electro and Dance and an Afrimma 2019 award for Best Male Southern Africa.