A ‘Sho’ thing for Durban
Rapper/poet rocks the city
MUSICIAN Sho Madjozi is set to spend another day or two in Durban, after performing for the first time in eThekwini, in Morningside last night.
The rapper and poet, known for her colourful Xitsonga-inspired outfits, kicked off the first of two events leading up to the One Source Live (OSL) Festival, taking place in Johannesburg on March 24.
Music lovers were treated last night to Madjozi’s performance alongside local band Palm Tree Paradise, as well as DJs Zulu and Muzi at Twenty5.
Entrance to the event was free, as is the case with the second one leading up to the OSL Festival which is aimed at bringing African creatives – from musicians and photographers to fashion designers – together in collaboration.
The OSL movement is led by Absolut ambassador Khuli Chana, who will take to the stage in Johannesburg next week, leading up to OSL.
Before her appearance in the city, Madjozi said she felt that her journey to Durban to perform for the first time was a full circle, as the music video (Gqi, by Okmalumkoolkat) in which she was featured and which gave rise to her career was also shot in Durban.
“I’ll spend an extra day or so in Durban to see if I can record some songs collaborating with some of the artists I shared the stage with last night – I’m very excited about that,” she said.
Speaking on the OSL – which brings together music, art, fashion and photography – Madjozi, who will be leading the Alternative genre stage, said she had nine acts booked already.
Inspired
“I’ll be dropping names in the next couple of weeks but I can tell you that rapper Youngsta will be on stage.
“What’s exciting is that I’ll be getting these acts to collaborate and the songs will be recorded live on stage,” she said.
OSL was inspired by Absolut’s philosophy – that the spirit is made in one place (one source in Sweden) and aims to uplift Africa as the source of creativity.
This has been apparent, especially when it comes to dance, where mega stars like Beyonce have been seen executing original SA dance moves and the latest being Rihanna who executed the Gwaragwara – a dance move proudly from Durban – at the Grammy Awards last month.
“For all of history, African art at its best has been used to inspire the rest of the world and, at its worst, has been used to mimic and/or be ripped off by the rest of the world.
“What Absolut has done is to put African artists at the centre of this, so that we can get to benefit and put our creativity on a global stage,” said Madjozi.
Brand manager for Absolut, Mongezi Sokanyile, said it was important to build a new narrative around African creativity for the rest of the world, explaining that the festival is a cross-discipline of art, fashion and music and would be led by rapper Khuli Chana, Sho Madjozi, South African fashion designer Trevor Stuurman, Fabrice Monteiro (Sene- galBenin/fashion and art) and Osborne Macharia (Kenya/ photography).
“Each will have a space at the festival. The alternative stage will have a combination of young, up-and-coming artists as well as some established names in the alternative space.
“There will also be mobile live fashion installations, as well as interactive arts installation,” he said.