“Rest in Peace to Riky Rick”: New York City Mayor-Elect Zohran Mamdani Flexes Knowledge of SA Music

• New York City Mayor-Elect Zohran Mamdani shared his knowledge and interest in South African music
• The Ugandan-born politician spoke about various South African artists when he appeared as a guest on Trevor Noah's podcast
• Zohran attended school in Cape Town during the late 1990s while his father worked at a prominent university

While in conversation with South African comedian Trevor Noah, Zohran Mamdani, New York City's Mayor-Elect, surprised people on Trevor's podcast, What Now? with Trevor Noah, when he shared his knowledge of South African musical artists.

The Facebook page for SouthAfricanpodcast posted a snippet of the interview, which was originally uploaded to Spotify on 16 December 2025. In the clip, the Ugandan-born politician stated that he wanted to discuss Cape Town, the city at which he attended primary school during the late 1990s, rapper Cassper Nyovest, and various local artists on the podcast.

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"I wanted to talk about Kwesta. I wanted to talk about Riky Rick. Rest in peace to Riky Rick, man. 'Boss Zonke,' I love that song, and I want to figure out how we can get Major League DJz on Spotify because I have listened to 'Slyza Tsotsi' on YouTube."

Zohran's statements prompted Trevor to request a trilogy of episodes with the mayor-elect, with co-host comedian and actor Eugene Khoza wondering about Zohran's availability after mentioning Johannesburg's mayoral elections.

Zohran Mamdani's time in Cape Town

Zohran, a democratic socialist, attended St George's Grammar School in Mowbray from 1996 to 1998. During this time, his father, Indian-Ugandan academic and anthropologist Mahmood Mamdani, worked as the Director of the Centre of African Studies at the University of Cape Town.

Watch the Facebook video posted on SouthAfricanpodcast's account below:

3 Other stories about Zohran Mamdani and NYC

• In another article, Briefly News reported that Zohran joined Trevor Noah on his podcast, where the two connected over their shared African roots.
• After he secured his win, many South Africans congratulated Zohran and celebrated the phenomenal victory.
• A South African content creator flew to New York for the City's annual marathon to support thousands of runners.

Source: Briefly News