Monday, July 31, 2017

Mazula Brings Happy Vibes to Monday Live


Well it's Monday, which means we had the pleasure of listening to live musicians in studio for Monday Live. Today we were joined by Zoe and Vusa Mazula who write and perform music together as a couple. The two musicians call themselves, Mazula, and will be releasing an EP and album within the next few months. 
 
Vusa Mazula is originally from Zimbabwe, but grew up in London where he met Zoe. The two moved to South Africa to open their own live music venue on Long Street. Recently however, the couple returned to writing and performing their own music. Vusa Mazula says that "songs take on a new flavor wherever you go," so their dream is to travel the country and collaborate with musicians across South Africa.  

When asked if they thought that live music will ever go out of style, both Zoe and Vusa responded with a resounding "no". "As long as people have voices and instruments," he said, "live music will never die". To experience the happy vibes and acoustic music of Mazula for yourself, catch them playing live at Odyssey on Bree Street this Wednesday. 



To contact Mazula, you can call or email them here: 
062-787-5468

music@capefarmhouse.com

Presenter: Mkhuseli Khusi Veto
Producer: Sophie Breck

Friday, July 28, 2017

Project Art and Rapper Conscious X

Today we spoke with three guests about their upcoming event called Project Art on Saturday 29 July. We were joined in the studio by the organisers of the event as well as one of the artists who will be performing.

Athenkosi Jwili is the Founder of Enkosi Foundation, which uses sport and the creative arts as a tool to rehabilitate youth. The Foundation has indoor and outdoor gyms as well as chess games to keep the youngsters’ minds constantly active. Enkosi Foundation creates fashion shows and musical events to boost, and will be supporting Project Art on Saturday.  

One of the artists performing at Project Art goes by the name, Conscious X. He is originally from Johannesburg, but moved to Cape Town because the “energy” drew him to the city. Conscious X has been rapping for over a decade and has been building his brand since 2008. He became involved with Enkosi Foundation so that he could show upcoming artists in the foundation what the journey of an artist can look like. Check out the video clip to see Conscious X riding a beat in studio:


Event details are on the poster below:



Presenter: Mkhuseli Khusi Veto
Producer: Sophie Breck

Thursday, July 27, 2017

Legends of South Africa

Here on the Morning Cruise we spoke with our guests about unsung heroes and their role in South Africa. Their organisation, Western Cape Legends, brings the stories of unsung heroes back into the community and also creates events where local legends can perform for their communities.   

One of our guests, Clive, is a legend himself. He played soccer professionally, yet because his career overlapped with the limitations of Apartheid, he could only play for a small selection of teams. Because many musicians, athletes, artists, and other community members were similarly limited in their careers during Apartheid, their current goal at Western Cape Legends is to “deliver young people a democratic state where they can fly.”

Western Cape Legends also mentors young people in the hopes that they can strengthen the young generation to follow their passions. Too often today, our decisions and choices revolve around money, but Western Cape Legends shares the message that the current generation should nurture and strengthen their passions. The organization also hopes that the young generation will continue to open opportunities for future generations to come. 

Western Cape Legends is hosting an event this Saturday where local legends will perform for the community. “Cape Flats is alive with talent,” our guests said, so come out witness it at the show.  

Event: Western Cape Legend Cabaret Show
When: 30 July 15:30-19:00
Where: Kismet Plaza, Klipfontein Road, Athlone

Presenter: Mkhuseli Khusi Veto
Producer: Sophie Breck


Tuesday, July 25, 2017

Hope Africa Collective: Hair Salon and Trade Skills Programmes

A crew of guests joined us from Hope Africa Collective today in the studio to speak about their Hair Salon programme and Trade Skills programme. Hope Africa Collective is an organization that focuses directly on the economic empowerment of individuals from our surrounding communities. Their various programs equip students with both handy skills and the skills needed to run their own business.

The Hair Salon Programme trains women in hair styling. The goal is to turn a common practical skill into a future career and business path. The program does not have an age limit and today we were lucky to hear from the youngest member of the program. She is just 19 years of age and is already thriving in the program.



The Trade Skills program trains men in safety, power tool use, maths, measuring methods, and construction phases. Once their training is completed, the men build the women in the Hair salon program their own salons, which are fully equipped for their needs. After finishing the salon construction, men in the Trade Skills program help maintain the building and then receive support from Hope Africa Collective as they transition to jobs outside of the programme.


Our guests from Hope Africa Collective emphasized the importance of supporting local businesses. Palesa Moeketsi, the Business Literacy Leader, emphasized that these small businesses are the “backbone of the country,” so we should support our local businesses rather than commercial services.  

Presenter: Mkhuseli Khusi Veto
Producer: Sophie Breck

Indoni Dance Academy and Upcoming Dance Performance "Ikhaya"


In our second interview of the day we dove into the world of dance with our guests from Indoni Dance Academy. Sbonakaliso is the artistic director and choreographer for the academy as well as a mentor to all of her students. She is an award-winning choreographer who grew up street dancing and then learned to dance other genres in Johannesburg when she acted in the movie, Sarafina.

Khanyisa, a student at Indoni Dance Company, began dancing in grade 8, but didn’t fall in love with the art until after grade 12. Little did we know, Khanyisa is also a lovely singer and we were lucky enough to hear her sing a small segment in the studio. Check out the video below to watch her sing in the studio.



Mbovu has been “jiving since childhood” and in addition to dance also helps behind the scenes with development for Indoni Dance Academy. He shows any listener that pursuing the arts can be a career, not just a passion.

Indoni Dance Academy is now pushing to become "a house for everybody". The future vision for the academy includes providing jobs for dancers, singers, interns, and even the elderly in the hopes of addressing the high unemployment rates in South Africa. 

Tickets are quickly selling out for the upcoming Dance Performance, iKhaya, so purchase your tickets now to witness the Indoni Dancers perform Sbonakaliso’s choreography.

Event details:
What: Dance Performance called, “iKhaya” 
Where: Artscape
When: Aug 2,3,4 @19h00 & Aug 5 @15h00
Cost: R50-R100
www.indoni-academy.org

Poster Credit: Dancers of Indoni Dance Academy – photo by  Robin Elam- Rye – Betalife Productions.

Presenter: Mkhuseli Khusi Veto
Producer: Sophie Breck