‘Entertainment capital’ finds its groove
Buffalo City party destination of note for SA music revellers
EVERY year-end, for just a few weeks, new life is injected into East London as the city gets its groove back.
This transformation comes about as thousands of locals return home for one big jol – an event many marketers have identified and are milking for profit.
A number of high profile gigs have taken or are taking place around the city over the holiday season.
They attract throngs of locals, holidaymakers – and even celebrities – who have now adopted Buffalo City Metro (BCM) as their summer holiday destination.
Over the past two festive seasons, the city has hosted a number of high profile events, which would have normally featured in big cities such as Cape Town, Johannesburg and Durban.
Big musical events that have already taken place around the city, include the annual Motsepe Foundation Music Festival in late November.
The concert saw thousands braving rainy weather to see top artists perform at the free concert held on the East London beachfront.
Another event was the Cruel Summer Picnic, which brought thousands of fun-lovers across BCM and beyond to the city’s Buffalo Park Cricket Stadium. The MetroFM Heatwave was another gem held at Buffalo Park, also attracting scores of revellers, who were entertained through the night by high-profile national artists, DJ’s and radio personalities.
Then, Buffalo Park Cricket Stadium hosted the annual Buyele’khaya Pan African Music Festival, which attracted thousands of revellers.
These events have resulted in massive economic spin-offs.
Glitzy and upmarket nightclubs such as The Sands at Latimers Landing and Oh!Brigado, at the fast-growing entertainment and lifestyle hub, Beacon Bay Crossing, have also recently opened their doors.
The Sands owner and organiser of MetroFM Heatwave Litha Yaya said East London was becoming the entertainment capital of South Africa during this period.
“We run The Sands in Jozi and 60% of our clientele there are from the Eastern Cape so we see it fitting that we bring the same party they are used to, to East London’s shores,” Yaya said.
He said one of the reasons many event organisers were focusing on East London was because “people here know how to party”.
“They never disappoint when it comes to attending events in numbers,” he said.
Olwethu Hoyana of Oh!Brigado said East Londoners were very supportive of big events and nightclubs.
Mdantsane-born internal auditor Mzimasi Royi – who is now based in Cape Town – said there was no “greater feeling than coming home in December”.
He said the emergence of upmarket clubs and big events was a boost for the city and holiday-makers. “It is like bringing all the big parties hosted in major cities over the year to our shores in just one month,” Royi said.
Another former resident, Neziswa Mqongwana, said she was excited about coming home to Gompo every December because “everything people like about Jozi, Cape Town and Durban, you find here in just a few weeks over the festive season.
“It just becomes a jam-packed holiday, which I refuse to miss.”
BCM’s local economic development and tourism head Vuyani Mbatha said it was “not by error” that people were flocking to the city. Mbatha said BCM had purposefully positioned itself as the sports and events destination of choice.
In the past three years “this unique city” had experienced a growth in international sporting and musical activities which came with big economic spin-offs.
“It is where things are happening. At this time we experience both direct and indirect economic spin-offs. “There are huge benefits for our hospitality industry, and also additional employment opportunities for locals,” Mbatha said.