Arthur’s girl queen of discs
Arthur’s daughter sets dance floor on fire as DJ
Self-proclaimed king of kwaito Arthur Mafokate and former kwaito star Queen Sesoko’s daughter Owami is following in the footsteps of her parents. At 16 and in grade 11 DJ Owami, as she is known to her fans, is the latest hit on the turn-tables. She effectively joins a growing legion of female DJs in the country.
She has landed a spot on kiddies show YoTV every Friday as resident DJ to celebrate Women’s Month. “My brother has been working there for years; he was put there by Akhumzi [Jezile, the late producer]. After my first show on August 3, he was literally crying, saying Akhumzi must be happy wherever he is,” she said. Even though she has never released any projects under her name, DJ Owami grew up in the limelight.
Most fans of her famous father and mother, who was the front lady of musical group Abashante, would remember seeing Owami performing from as early as the age of four; she was dancing on TV at six.
Owami said she decided on deejaying because her parents would not let her be a singer. She receives mentorship from her famous brother DJ AJ.
“I have been singing since I was a kid but my parents don’t really want me to do it. They, however, support me by taking me for lessons,” she added, noting she was not in a hurry to release an album as she was currently focusing on her studies.
She added that her famous parents had been very instrumental in her music career. In addition Owami has her own clothing label, Hermosa.
“They are always talking and playing music and people always talk and mention their names. A lot of people always talk about them having changed the state of music in this country.”
Sesoko has since ditched the kwaitostar persona “Queen Iyaya” in favour of a career as a gospel singer.
‘‘ I have been singing since I was a kid and my parents are supporting me