“Impilo means life,” amapiano singer, songwriter and producer Aymos tells Apple Music. “I'm talking about my life; the things I went through; the challenges I faced; and where I am now.” Across his 2024 album’s 14 tracks—and alongside a bevy of A-list guest stars including Cassper Nyovest, Samthing Soweto, Nkosazana Daugther, Mas Musiq and more—Aymos chronicles his journey of growth with stories that reveal an artist who’s proud of who he’s become, and respects the not-always-smooth path it’s taken to get there. “When you shorten ‘impilo’ to ‘impi’, that means ‘war,’” Aymos (Babili Aymos Shili) explains. “And that's what life is. We are all at war. We’re all fighting to get somewhere. Everyone is trying to figure something out. And it's not a smooth journey for everyone. We all try now get to that position. But it's not a competition. It's a marathon. It doesn't matter who really gets there first—as long as you get to the goal.” Here, he talks through key tracks from the album. “San’bonani” (feat. Tee Jay, T-Man SA & PlayNevig) “‘San’bonani' means ‘greetings’. This is how I envisioned the album—me waking up in the morning, opening the curtains, and the light beaming through my window. The morning rush, everyone heading to work, And I'm like, 'San'bonani,' as the journey is about to start. I sang it with different languages—‘Sanibonani, Dumelang, molweni ekuseni’—because I'm speaking to the masses as the project starts. I'm talking to Pedi, Zulu, Xhosa, Tswana, and English [speaking people]. And basically I'm saying, ‘We are thanking God for this life. We don't know what tomorrow has, but we thank God for the life that he gave us now.’ “Esgela” (feat. Eemoh & Kabza De Small) “‘Esgela’ literally means, everything that I am now, it's things that I used to daydream about. And not just daydreaming, but putting action to all my plans. I went to Norkem Park High School; there's no music as a subject there, but I would even bunk classes to go into the basement just to play. I remember at some point the principal locked [the basement] and took the keys away. And I went to sit by the office, waiting for him to come out. When he stepped out, I was like, 'Man, please.' And he saw my tears in my eyes, and was like, 'You know what, Aymos, just take the keys and just get out of my face.’ This song really reminds me of the sacrifices and how much I was willing to go an extra mile just to play the keyboard. And I collaborated with Eemoh; we did a school tour and shot music videos at schools so that [students] can understand that, 'Guys, we are not different from you. I'm the same guy. You guys can also do it.’” “Amabhoza” (feat MaWhoo) (with Mas Musiq) “‘Amabhoza’ means ‘the boys who got things covered’. Boys that spend at groove. They've got their tables filled with bottles and bottles, expensive bottles, and they don't mind swiping without looking at the price. Here, I’m telling the story of what happens in clubs. We go clubbing every now and then, because that's our office. I'm like, ‘Oh my gosh. These guys could spend so much money.’ The sound is slightly different from what MaWhoo used to do—she’s more of an African sound, low notes—but she nailed it.” “10K Yey’nkomo” (feat. Sha Sha) (with Mas Musiq & Samthing Soweto) “Basically, as a man, we've got a huge responsibility. When you say you love a woman, you got to have at least 10K just to open your mouth, especially in today's day and age. Yo, love is so expensive. And in our Black culture, we are always encouraged to have one partner and basically to marry. If you are going to love someone, marry the person so you can both grow together in love and family knows, all of that. And it's so sad that the economy does not really align with our African methods. I'm emphasising that just to open your mouth, it's R10,000. Amalobolo is where you get to the potential bride's house, but before you enter the gate, you stand there and take money out and then they come. 'No, it's not enough. More money.’ That's what we are facing for the name of love. And it has a sense of humour in it. Samthing Soweto gave it an old-school feel; he’s a pioneer. And Sha Sha, by diversifying to [singing in] Shona. I was like, ‘Thank God. Now at least in Zimbabwe, they will be able to hear and dance to the song.’ I love it.” “Billiato” (with Cassper Nyovest) “It's a beautiful song. I only knew Billiato after Cassper’s Billiato [alcohol brand], which he [describes as] ‘a taste of wealth’. So on ‘Billiato’, I'm saying, ‘I spent thousands; now I need millions. I've messed around with women before. Now I want the right partner to spend the rest of my life with. I've drank bottles and bottles before, but now I want Billiato.’ It's basically claiming the next level. And Cassper Nyovest, yo. We recorded it years ago, but he came just at the right time. [Collaborating] was an amazing experience, man. He was really giving me wisdom on how to get there, on how to attain these things, because he's such a marketing guru himself.” “Bayabalwa” (feat. Nkosazana Daughter & Em-One) “‘Bayabalwa’ means there are very few, very few—the scarcity of beautiful women like you. It's just a song about love, that [my love] took my heart and gave it a home, a very beautiful and warm home. It was amazing also having Nkosazana Daughter. I respect her so much and appreciate her contribution on the song. When I'm alone, I do good. But when we are together, we can even do great stuff.” “Bahle Bahlukile” (feat. Em-One & Melosoul) “This one is for musicians basically, what we go through. As musicians, we usually work at night. We come back home tired, only to find our spouses or girlfriends sleeping—and they would just wake up to want to [check], ‘How are you looking? Do you have makeup [on you]? Do you have any lipstick [marks] or anything like that?’ It’s when she's woken up by jealousy, of wanting to know, 'What happened, who were you with?' [Here] I’m putting them at ease. 'Baby girl, I see them, they're a lot. They are beautiful—but my eyes are only glued on you, so you don't have to worry that's because also there aren't a lot like you. There aren't girls like you, who can touch my heart like you do.’" “Vumile” (feat. Nomfundo Moh & Em-One) “That's my favourite jam on the album. When I close my eyes, I envision myself—you know that [ribbon] that you cut after just [buying a] house? I envision myself buying a new house, buying a car; graduating; getting a promotion. Like when God had said yes, no one can say no. It doesn't matter who and when. It doesn't matter the age or background, any circumstance. When it's your time, it's your time. And Nomfundo Moh did amazing. She's quite an amazing soul to work with.” “Ngane yami” (feat. Mngobi Yazo & Em-One) “That's the story of my life. It says, ‘We couldn't control ourselves, we couldn't contain ourselves, and we thought it's just a one night thing.’ [I had a situation like this, and] we made a child, which is my child, and who is named after the album. HIs name is Impilo. There's a lot of people go through [this kind of situation]. I've got a lot of brothers who say, ‘Oh, dog, she was my girlfriend. But we didn't plan it. We wanted to do it like this.’ But a baby was born. He's a beautiful gift. What I'm saying there is that whatever happens, I'll forever take care of my child. I'll be a present dad. I'll do anything just as my father did for me and even beyond.” “Utshwala” (feat. Reece Madlisa & TO Starquality) “‘Utshwala’ means alcohol. It's a very funny pun, but in IsiZulu, and it basically says, ‘We want to exit the alcohol life, but we can't see the door anymore. We can't find the door to go out.’ It literally means the door, and figuratively it means quitting alcohol. A lot of people want to quit, but because it's now an addiction or a habit, it becomes hard for us to quit. I'm saying, ‘Please bear with us. Bear with us. We'll get there.’ I did this with TO Starquality, who is the producer I worked with since day one, and he's still around. He's a brother now. He's a brother of mine. And we have Reece Madlisa with the iKasi vibe. He killed it.”