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Maskanda (or Maskandi) is a kind of Zulu folk music that is evolving with South African society. Ethekwini Online describes it as "The music played by the man on the move, the modern minstrel, today’s troubadour. It is the music of the man walking the long miles to court a bride, or to meet with his Chief; a means of transport. It is the music of the man who sings of his real life experiences, his daily joys and sorrows, his observations of the world. It’s the music of the man who’s got the Zulu blues."

Nowadays this is untrue in as much as it is no longer just the domain of men. African women - notably [Busi Mhlongo] - are also making Maskandi music. Maskandi music is largely popular and mostly consumed in the Kwa-Zulu Natal province, given its rich Zulu heritage and significance to the Zulu tribe. Looking at the genre from a record sales point of view...Maskandi happens to be the 2nd top selling genre in South Africa, after Gospel music. Although Maskandi music can be heard in more urban cities such as Johannesburg and Cape Town, it is important to note that it is largely the played by migrants who come to the big cities to seek a better quality of life and better employment opportunities. This music is typically considered backward and irrelevant by most city dwellers, given that the roots of the music are deeply entrenched in rural Kwa-Zuli Natal, and feature heavy elements of Zulu culture. Due to this, the music typically fails to connect with a wider audience and this is largely due to a lack of overall understanding of the genre, which subsequently leads to a lack of interest from listeners.