Zef means that money and/or being upper class is meaningless, because the same kind of lavish, or to abuse the term ‘posh’ is attainable no matter what your financial standing is. Zef, as a term, describes a lower-class ‘class’, a punk-like approach to life. “Zef” is at the heart of Die Antwoord, to the point where they themselves describe their music as “fresh Zef” (also stated in their monumental single, “Enter the Ninja.”) Zef is a philosophy that venerates the lower class and demands more attention to be paid to the content, rather than the context. Die Antwoord isn’t, in this context, a music duo: it’s a concept, an experience, a riddle and an answer. Theirs is not an art that’s limited to music: from the sets, costumes and production of their music videos to their live shows, their in-your-face image, to the things they say in interviews, it is a cohesive whole. It’s when songs like “Fatty Boom Boom” appear that you get a glimpse at the truth: Die Antwoord isn’t three weirdos clowning around for the sake of it, and making a buck in the process. Tracks like “Enter the Ninja”, “Rich Bitch”, “Hey Sexy”, “Baby’s On Fire” are filled to the brim with ridiculous lines and almost beyond over-the-top indulgence in the excess. However, Die Antwoord’s lyricism is what leads many to dismiss them as a crude joke.
Ninja and Yo-Landi’s lyrical styles are vibrant, their flow rich and varied, and you often find yourself listening to one or both spitting razor-sharp lyrics at incredible speeds without losing coherence. Mixing trance and rave with old and new-school hip hop and Afrikaans lyrics with English ones and with a firm grasp on lyricism itself, Die Antwoord channels a music that is a genre unto its own. The duo is often accompanied by the occult-ish DJ Hi Tek, who seems to be played by a different actor in his every visual media appearance, and wears a buck-toothed mask in live performances.
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