Kay Faith

Kay Faith, born Karien Barnard, is a hip-hop producer and engineer from Cape Town who’s been making waves in South African music. This year has been nothing short of incredible for Kay, filled with milestones that highlight her growth and influence in the industry.

In 2024, she took her talent to the world stage, performing at the iconic SXSW festival in Austin, Texas. She didn’t stop there—she brought her beats to audiences in Los Angeles and Miami, proving that South African hip-hop belongs on any stage, anywhere.

Back home, Kay also celebrated a huge personal achievement: completing her Honours degree in Electronic Music Production through the University of West London. And as if that wasn’t enough, she was honored as part of Cape Town’s cultural heartbeat with a mural painted by Bushy Wopp at the Cultish Bree Street flagship store—an ode to her role in shaping the local music scene.

Known as “The Woman Engineering Your Favorite South African Hip-Hop Releases,” Kay has worked with some of the biggest names in the game, like Nasty C, AKA, and YoungstaCPT. Whether she’s in the studio recording award-winning tracks or sampling classics for her next big hit, Kay is all about celebrating local sounds while showing the world what South African hip-hop is made of.

With such a massive year behind her, the question isn’t whether Kay Faith will keep pushing boundaries—it’s where she’ll take us next.