Entertainment legend

MISSION: BRIDGING THE GAP BETWEEN BUSINESS, CREATIVE WORLD A Stella(r) ambassador for SA and the continent’s music.

The entertainment industry is in her blood and music the foundation. Passionate music executive Antos Stella has built her career on this love. Name a legendary artist, and Stella has either discovered, launched or supported a career or formed a solid friendship. Lucky Dube, Mahlathini and the Mahotella Queens, Ray Phiri. The list is endless and so is her sustained enthusiasm for the music and talent of South Africa and the continent. Stella’s extraordinary career of nearly three decades in the music industry established her as a legend to artists and a force in the boardroom.

“I started at Gallo Record Company when I was 24,” says Stella and “when I was taken to see its studios, I was hooked. I knew that this is what I had to do.”

Since then, Stella has been instrumental in some of the biggest music projects in the country, became a de facto ambassador for South Africa and the continent’s music.

“I was fortunate at the time that Gallo allowed me to traverse Africa with artists, to travel relentlessly in pursuit of promotion,” she says.

She became very close to her artists, consequently gaining a deeper understanding of their needs and perspectives outside of the executive at the label. She successfully bridged the gap between business and the creative world and has become a legend for it.

“In the past the music industry was not always known for its artist-friendly approach to doing business,” says Stella, “and I always look at it from the artist’s perspective too. One has to.”

Stella has owned Content Connect Africa, a digital aggregator business, for several years now where she has developed partnerships with broadcast, online and mobile network operators locally, continentally and globally to distribute homegrown music.

“While music is a business, ultimately, commercial arrangements must always be equitable and fair to all parties,” she says.

“When I retire one day, what I want to leave behind is a legacy of passion, skill and an absolute desire for the music industry, in fact the whole creative industry, to become a global beacon for South Africa and Africa.”

Stella was the first woman to head up a major record company during her tenure as managing director at Gallo, and she says that part of her mission is to draw more young women to the music industry today.

“There are still not enough women in the business, and I aim to change that still.”

A next step in promoting African talent has been the development of Viva Nation, a video on demand, online radio and content brand that not only focuses on music, but also on providing a platform for filmmakers, producers, writers and up and coming artists to showcase and monetise their work. Viva Nation was launched in stages last year, due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

“We have so much talent in Africa, whether in music or the visual arts. The time for our continent is now, and the world’s appetite is there. It’s time that we work really hard to expose, build and sustain a creative industry.”