Open house at Mi Casa
REGROUPING: LOCKDOWN GIVES GROUP CHANCE TO PLAN WHAT TO CHASE
Worried about future because live performances are their moneymakers.
Lockdown has been hard on the music industry, but music group Mi Casa has found ways to make the music go on.
What have the financial constraints been?
The obvious: no shows, no money. As an artist you make your money from performing. We had tours booked, but that has been placed on hold. It has also helped us to plan and think about what we want to do and what we want to chase because we’ve been doing this a long time.
How have J’Something’s restaurant and food-related products been affected?
All restaurants have been affected. The industry is a mess at the moment but creating another brand helps because now we are not only doing the music side of things, we can do food-related things. We have always believed we are not just artists, but creators as well.
What are the band’s plans for the future should the lockdown continue for an extended period?
The plan is in motion. We’ve got cool, innovative stuff in the works in relation to our album. We’ve been building a movement with regards to the album that will see us travelling and connecting with people. Online puts some stress on us because we see a lot of artists putting out their craft online for free across social media platforms. We get paid for our craft, why would you want to put that out for free … maybe artists should think differently now.
How do you feel about live streaming and video streaming events?
It’s interesting, it’s definitely a part of the future. But how are you using it? Are you making money from it? There are some awkward things about it, like engagement numbers and the low energy exchange from viewers.
Comedian Marc Lo ering has recently opened up to a global audience. Is this something you would consider?
We speak about [it]. We’ve been connected for years, it’s called the world wide web. We have been putting out content for years and, yes, that fact that we have fans across the world is a part of our strategy.
What do you think the future of music will be? Will we ever go to live concerts again ?
ing. There isn’t a plan to protect that asset that artists have. Gone are the days of buying records, so live performances are the moneymakers. Value should not be lost.
What are your future collaborations?
We did a song with Rouge, a trap soul vibe. We’ve got Nasty C on an Afro pop vibe and we also did a song with Stilo Magolide. Jay Em co-produced our whole album – they are two young boys from Port Elizabeth that are now living with J’Something and that he mentors. They won a competition to remix one of our songs and it took off from there.
Once this is all over, what’s the first place you want to tour?
Definitely want to tour home, South Africa. Be with the people that were with us when we started. Ten years is such a milestone for us, especially for a band.
What is your message to the youth of SA?
History is such an important part of us... we need to understand and learn about our history. We’ve got so much going on right now such as Black Lives Matter, gender-based violence, mental health, pollution, health and nutritional issues, etc. We need to use our voices to focus on important things and not doing things for clout and all the unnecessary social media stuff. This has made people stop and think about more important things.