SA talent shines in Beyoncé movie
“VUMANI bo! Siyavuma! Selingenile ikumkani.” This is how musician Busiswa sprung up in the middle of Beyoncé’s visual film Black is King that was premiered in Africa on DStv’s M-Net channel on Saturday night.
Rocking a custom Nix Dlova headpiece, Busiswa continued to shimmer, shine and sparkle as she rapped her Xhosa verse in the song, My Power, like it was her epilogue.
She is one of the standout moments from the 85-minute film that pays homage to black beauty, talent, excellence and heritage from all corners of the world.
Through its use of rich landscape shots, Afrocentric fashion and politically charged music, Black is King is nothing short of a feast for the eyes.
After guarding the secret with her life for almost a year, Busiswa has spilt details of working opposite Beyoncé.
“The first take I was trying to be a lady, sassy, groovy and soft. After, a gentleman came up to me and said ‘we are going to need you to go hard’,” Busiswa said.
“From there, I went in and felt like I was doing the performance of my life. I think we did 23 takes, but I was just trying to do as many African moves as I could – so dances like twalatsa, kwasa-kwasa, gwara-gwara, pouncing cat.
“That is the day I met the queen [Beyoncé]. The queen was in the room graciously floating. After a couple of shots, she came up to me and said ‘girl, you are a beast’, very softly.”
Flying to Los Angeles to film the video alongside Tierra Whack, Moonchild, Yemi Alade and Beyoncé was a dream come true for Busiswa. The song was produced by
Durban-born gqom trailblazer DJ Lag.
“It was actually my first time in a first-class seat - I know you guys think artistes get first class all the time, but there is no money even though we pretend that there is,” Busiswa said.
“When I got to LA, I connected with Moonchild. What you must understand is that Moonchild and myself are both from the Eastern Cape and here we were in LA together about to do what felt like the most incredible project we have ever been part of. “We didn’t know anything, we had no details and we were just presenting ourselves. We showed up and we were chauffeured. Everything was in large proportion and we were in awe - and just excited.” It’s not only SA musicians who got the spotlight in the film that is scored by music from The Lion King: The Gift album.
SA actors Nandi Madida, Warren Masemola, Connie Chiume, Nyaniso Ndedze, Nambitha BenMazwi, Lindiwe Dim and the late Mary Twala were cast in re-imagining the story of The Lion King. Ben-Mazwi cited Busiswa as her favourite moment in the film and credited the late casting director Moonyeenn Lee for her involvement in the project.
“Being an advocate for dark skin magic and a voice for women empowerment, this for me as an artist was such a personal purpose project. As Nina Simone always says, an artist’s job is to reflect the times,” BenMazwi said.
“Being part of such a shift in black art and history, being able to tell our own stories richly, boldly and authentically is what this moment means for me.” – Sowetan
ZIMBABWEAN songstress, Nkwali who is a victim of abuse has decided to share her story through a single Uyimbokodo, with the music video due to be released this Friday.
The single is from her upcoming album titled Themba which was named after her late father and is dedicated to him.
Musician Dumisani “Ramadu” Moyo produced and recorded the song whose lyrics were composed by Nkwali.
Without getting into detail, Nkwali said she was abused like the many women in this world, a story she will share through the Uyimbokodo.
She said the music video will be premiered on her YouTube channel and Facebook page on Friday.
“I went through all those kinds of abuses and I know how it feels to be a victim of abuse. I got the inspiration (of Uyimbokodo) from my own experience and of course, from what we see and read about everyday.
“I know there are men who go through abuse and I think it’s really bad. People should talk things through and not fight,” said Nkwali who is currently in the country because of the lockdown.
Uyimbokodo, Nkwali said talks about women abuse as well as child abuse.
“Women go through so much abuse emotionally, verbally, physically and sexually. If a mother is abused, it affects her kids as well. Children watch their fathers beat up their mothers and that is the worst thing any child can go through. Women are raped, killed or sometimes left for dead, issues I tackle on the song,” she said.
Nkwali urged men who abuse women not to do so as they would not abuse their own mothers.
“With this song, I’m basically saying let’s love, respect and protect our women because they make us who we are,” she said. – @ bonganinkunzi