Friends of Staywell to promote local acts
In order to promote local arts and appreciate their clients, Staywell Hotel will host a 100% local line-up event called Friends of Staywell Appreciation party at Staywell Gardens in Rasesa on February 26, 2022.
Staywell general manager, Neo Ntlole told a media briefing this week the Friends of Staywell is a partnership of Staywelll Gardens, Hey Nyenaah and Chrispin The Drummer.
She said the idea behind the idea was to appreciate their clients and those they do business with. “We were planning a staff Christmas party which we could hold in December. We decided to hold it in January and people like Hey Nyenaah reached out to ask why they were not invited.
We decided then to throw a party for friends of Staywell to also promote local arts, that is why we decided to go with a 100% local line-up,” she said.
Ntlole added their venue in Rasesa was established in 2010 with the mandate of hosting several events including parties and weddings.
She said when Covid hit them as the hospitality industry, they shut down for two months with no business and income.
She said they recently came to life by hosting Rasesa Social Picnic amongst other social gatherings.
She said entertainment industry, just like hospitality, was shut down during the pandemic. She said some of the proceeds from the event will be donated to an NGO with the help of Ministry of Youth Empowerment, Sport and Culture Development. She said they will give away free stalls to people except for food and beverages.
For his part, Chrispin The Drummer said he became part of the event after performing at Staywell during the festive season.
He said since the hospitality industry was busy, he suggested that they host the event in January. “Friends of Staywell comprises many people including patrons, staff and artists.”
He said the reason they decided to go with a local line-up was because there was an influx of foreign artists in the country during the festive season. “They made a lot of money and left while a number of locals didn’t have work. We then decided to promote our own with the event.
We chose ATI as our headliner because of the work he has been putting out there,” he revealed. Crispin also added DJ Ngwazi of Uthando to the line-up because he has been doing well in SA alongside Master KG.
He also announced that amongst others in the line-up is Charma Gal Khoisan, Hapex Guru, and Casper The DJ just. He said during the day they will also cater for children with kiddies activities.
He also announced that the lineup will also include comedians like Mawila just to mention but a few. He said Batswana should support each other going forward in order to grow. “We should book each other because if we don’t, there won’t be any development in the sector.
We are not saying ‘let’s not book foreign artists’ but let there be balance so that we can all work together,” he highlighted. Local MC and entertainer Hey Nyenaah said he became part of the event after getting top notch hospitality from the hotel.
HHe said they decided to take the event to Rasesa instead of Mogoditshane at the hotel because they wanted an event to be hosted all night in an open space and cater for everyone. He said they will provide the best security on the night and patrons should feel safe.