“I’ll wear that when I’m ready” – The Psychological Weight of our Wardrobes

Jul 31, 2025 | Lifestyle, Fashion

Our wardrobes are representative of our psyches, and fashion is as much indicative of our emotional and psychological terrain as it is about clothing our bodies for functionality. This I know to be true; as someone who has always ‘loved’ fashion, and who has straddled the finicky line between having certain instincts for my personal style set against struggles toward any kind of accurate or healthy self-perception, especially around how I wish to be perceived. In my early to mid-twenties, my sense of personal style had to be – as the kids say – ‘extra’, and in almost all instances where I knew I was going to be perceived for my sartorial choices, I had to signal my affinity for the obscure and unexpected, every single time. I simply could not allow anyone, least not myself, to perceive me as ever taking the road most travelled. God forbid, I didn’t make a statement. 

A skirt over pants, a myriad of clashing textures – a chain hanging from my nose ring to my ear – chunky Dr Martens, bras over shirts, my poor but relentless attempts at upcycling, layers and layers and then some. In hindsight, my clothing choices served as emblems of my psyche then: non-conformist and deeply suspicious of authority, murky in my ability to make choices, and irreverent for a time in my life (teenhood) that was chaotic and uncontained. Equally, my clothing choices also expressed my penchant for joy and humour. Now, this is not to say that anyone who dresses with reckless abandon is necessarily expressing these ideas (I would never judge anyone, and in fact, I think maximalism is equally a healthy indicator of someone’s creative freedom or emotional exuberance) — instead, these are the conclusions I can examine, in retrospect, for myself today. I think examining our personal style choices is less about establishing a moral hierarchy and more about tracing the existential threads that bind us to the expression of our identities; and it’s an analysis worth undertaking, especially as we each navigate a world that demands our material allegiance to hyper-consumption; bloated shopping carts, fleeting trends and all.  

Photography courtesy of Alamy 
Photography courtesy of Pexels 

We all have clothes in our wardrobe that seem to be waiting for the version of ourselves that we haven’t quite stepped into yet; or maybe never will. The emotional weight and psychology of fashion as self-promise and styling can become either a form of self-actualisation or avoidance; and again, personal style is an arduous journey; the question is, how deeply should we be curating ourselves, or can we just live on with reckless abandon, changing our style from moment to moment and day-to-day?

The wardrobe as a space is rarely neutral. It is, in many ways, an archive of the selves we’ve performed, abandoned, or longed to become. In Jungian terms, our clothing serves as a kind of persona; the mask we wear to interact with the world, shaped by the roles we feel we must play. We dress, consciously or not, to signal belonging, to conceal insecurity, to assert identity, or to protect our vulnerability. The outfits we choose become a tool of translation from our inner selves to the outer world, and it’s precisely this that makes fashion as a construct so endlessly compelling, and as a commercial endeavour; so wildly successful as an enterprise. The most powerful thing that you can sell someone, is their sense of self. 

Fashion psychologist Dr. Carolyn Mair points out the self-regulatory function of fashion as it relates to human behaviour, writing in The Psychology of Fashion that, “what we wear affects how we feel, think and behave, and how others respond to us. Clothing is a powerful form of self-expression which can enhance self-esteem, improve confidence, and influence our psychological processes.” If dressing is a form of identity construction, then there is surely an ache that emerges when our wardrobe becomes populated by versions of ourselves we haven’t quite lived into, such as the dress that never made it out of the house; the boots we bought with confidence we didn’t yet possess, and for many of us, the pieces we bought that we might be one day be ‘thin enough’ to wear with comfortable confidence. 

These items can gather dust on our shelves as echoes of imagined selves and in their silence, and staring back at them, they might ask us: who are you dressing for? Is it the present self, the aspirational self, or someone else entirely? This tension between authenticity and aspiration, between now and not-yet, can become one of the most emotionally complex aspects of personal style, and the promise fashion makes to us that we can somehow adorn ourselves to finally feel and be enough. 

Aspirational fashion walks a fine line between transformation and illusion. On one hand, it can be a powerful tool for self-actualisation, as touted by the theory of enclothed cognition, coined by Hajo Adam and Adam Galinsky, which suggests that the clothes we wear actively shape our own thoughts, emotions, and behaviours. The researchers undertook studies centred around white lab coats to explore how clothing influences cognitive performance, and asked whether simply wearing a garment associated with a particular role — in this case, a doctor’s coat — could affect the wearer’s psychological processes. In one study, participants who wore what they were told was a doctor’s coat performed significantly better on attention-related tasks than those who wore the same coat but were told it was a painter’s smock, or who didn’t wear a coat at all. The researchers concluded that both the symbolic meaning of the garment and the physical act of wearing it had an impact on the wearer’s attention and cognitive control, and this suggests that our psychological understanding of our clothing is intimately activated through our perception. Thus, knowing why we wear something might yield results in ways previously unknown to our unconscious indifference. Clothing holds power. 

Dressing like the version of ourselves we want to become can enhance confidence,  cognitive performance. It’s why, working from home, I wake up and dress up each morning and I swear, it gives me the focus I need to separate my personal and professional life. 

Photography courtesy of Pexels 
Photography courtesy of Pexels 
So, what happens when we accumulate clothes for lives we’re not yet living? What’s to say of the habit of “saving” special pieces for occasions that never come, or when buying garments suited to an imagined lifestyle can tip into fantasy? Fashion might start to resemble self-help culture here as a form of visualisation, or a way of manifesting a new identity. We know that, as a culture increasingly experiencing a loss of collective autonomy, the constant performance of ‘bettering’ ourselves can become its own kind of trap; a cycle of endless self-optimisation under the guise of personal empowerment. 

Again, I don’t think we need to be morally prescriptive here, instead, can we hold space for a more nuanced awareness? When those future versions of ourselves don’t arrive, or when life doesn’t align with the image we’ve dressed for, what remains? Are we holding onto garments that once felt aspirational but now hang heavy as emotional clutter? Is it actually even really that deep? 

Across social media, personal style has become a kind of visual shorthand for identity that is curated and easily recognisable. The rise of the “signature style” and the capsule wardrobe movement reflects a broader cultural desire for coherence and control, and perhaps a tightly edited wardrobe of neutral tones has come to signal discipline and a sense of self that doesn’t waver. I think of my earlier style — more experimental, eclectic — and compare it to my current affinity for ‘less is more’. Still, I find myself wondering: is this shift actually an expression of a hard-won inner clarity? Or am I, like, selling-out? The beautiful thing is, though, that personal style is a life-long process; it’s present with us in all the seasons of our experience.

Similarly, such rigid consistency across how we dress can risk reducing style to performance rather than expression. In contrast, bell hooks wrote passionately about clothing as a space of liberation, particularly for Black women, whose identities have long been policed and politicised. In her work, clothing was  intellectually and politically relevant as a site of resistance, creativity, and truth-telling, and bell championed the right to dress in ways that reflect multiplicity over any kind of conformity or strategic legitimacy. This is truly personal, sartorial freedom. 

When we shift our look daily, monthly or weekly are we actually just simply being honest? Perhaps dressing differently each day is a reflection of the many selves we hold within, and maybe that’s the whole damn point; that seizing the mood of the moment, as we change with nuanced effect each day, is an act of self-respect. I suppose if there’s one noble thing fashion can do, it’s to remind us that none of us are fixed or unoriginal; our clothes are simply one small part of the entire complexity of who we are.

I guess, I’ll stay layering; my recklessness charged toward self-acceptance. 

Written by Holly Beaton

For more news, visit the Connect Everything Collective homepage www.ceconline.co.za

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Instinct Over Everything With Photographer Katinka Bester

Jul 29, 2025 | Interviews, Creatives

Most South African creatives cut their teeth on home soil, honing their craft locally before setting their sights abroad; chasing the dream of international recognition and spreading their wings. Katinka Bester, however, followed a counter-narrative. Today, as a veteran photographer (though young as she still is), Katinka’s formative years were spent in the visual capitals of New York and Paris; running circles around spaces most in fashion could only dream of accessing. She cut her teeth under the exacting eye of industry legend Ulrich Knoblauch and rubbed shoulders with fashion’s global inner circle; building her vision in the epicentre of style before circling back to South Africa with a uniquely sharpened lens. 

Now, with a body of work that suffuses technical precision with poetic instinct, it’s almost surreal to imagine that her earliest forays behind the camera included muses like Isabel Marant, or that she was present during the golden days of Self Service, on the cusp of Bella Hadid’s ascent, or in the thick of it at a Supreme party alongside Virgil Abloh and Tremaine Emory. Katinka’s testing ground was the fashion frontier — and most refreshing about her is the way she views those mid 2010s experiences: as fun, irreverent, and ultimately inconsequential to her sense of self or creative purpose. As Katinka later tells me, “I’ve always had a good head on my shoulders.”

What’s the opposite of clout-chasing, as the kids call it today? Of myth-making? This refusal to pedestalise the hype is perhaps Katinka’s most fundamental quality professionally (aside from her phenomenal talent) — a grounded relationship to reality, to fame and to the fleeting nature of it all. That a 22-year-old South African bartender from Cape Town’s iconic P&G’s could end up shooting backstage at Paris Fashion Week or brushing past Chloë Sevigny at a Supreme party, is a reminder that talent, spirit, and an openness to possibility might be the best passport of all; these are the substances of instinct, timing, and a kind of creative courage that can be neither taught nor bought.

All photography courtesy of Katinka Bester
“I didn’t set out to become a photographer,” Katinka reflects. “At one point, I actually thought I’d study law, but deep down, I always knew I was creative, and that I needed to be around people.” Katinka speaks with a candour that cuts through any illusion of a carefully plotted career path, and that “I had a tough childhood. My mum was very ill when I was growing up, so for a long time, I was just trying to survive. After she passed away when I was 22, I had to find my own way.” Photography, as it turns out, found her, as a salve for her grief and a tool to make meaning of the world that she’s been ever-observant of. “Someone suggested I come work on a set, just to see what it was like. I had no idea what I was doing, but I loved it — I was barefoot, laughing, totally in the moment.” Set has an incredible way of nourishing those of us with a proclivity for chaos; finally, we can embrace unpredictability and flock around in flow state. The best set are like compressed passages of time shared with other creatives and of course — perfect for Katinka, whose eye thrives on distilling the fragmentary essence of essential and raw moments. 

This sense of spontaneity — of letting life unfold in wild, unscripted ways — is something Katinka has carried since her days behind the bar at Power & Glory, part of the bar’s initial set of bartenders who shepherded its glory days;  “It was wild — we had no rules, played our own music, threw people out if we didn’t like them,” Katinka laughs. “It was a creative hub, really. All these incredible people passed through, even international celebrities when they came to shoot films. That time really confirmed for me how much I love working with people, and that I thrive in chaotic environments.”

Starting as a ‘digi’ on sets — a digital assistant – and quickly known for her speed and precision, Katinka’s work alongside photographers and clients was edified in frenetic environments. Ulrich Knoblauch, one of South Africa’s most revered fashion photographers, became her mentor and gateway to the wider world of New York and Paris fashion. “I honestly owe so much to him — he believed in me, pushed me, and brought me into international space.”

Katinka’s entry into the world of fashion was anything but conventional; “Ulrich started shooting the First Looks for Self Service Magazine, it’s this intense backstage moment before models step onto the runway,” she explains. “You don’t know if you’re going to get your shot. Designers can be cutthroat, they can be yelling ‘Vogue can stay, Interview can stay, everyone else — out,’ It was wild. Ulrich got headhunted to do other work and eventually brought me in. I bought a ticket to New York and just went for it.” Self Service is something of a myth today, and the bi-annual Parisian publication is perhaps the last stop on the road that winds out of fashion’s print publishing heyday. Katinka’s approach in those early days was unapologetically gutsy, and she recalls barreling late into an Alexander Wang show, weaving under legs and demanding space in the ‘pit’ (the chaotic frontline for photographers at shows). Yet, as Katinka notes, her photographs reveal none of the frenzied battle behind the scenes and that, “I’ve always been instinctive. When you’re working backstage, there’s no time to curate — you shoot fast, and you shoot with feeling,” she says. “That kind of working environment taught me to trust my eye and my body, to shoot from intuition rather than overthinking. It’s become part of my style. I know how to get the shots I want.” There can be this perception that the best artists or creatives are those who endlessly deliberate and rework every frame; thousands of shots later, and exhausted time spent. I have always been suspicious of this kind of methodical obsession, and whether it has little bearing on true skill or talent; often, it feels typically self-indulgent. Rather, Katinka’s ability to carve the precise image she wants out of imperfect circumstances or compositions renders her work radically and totally free from artifice and constraint. Sensational. 

What began as assisting soon morphed into a solo practice, as designers began requesting Katinka directly; “That’s how I started shooting house shows; when a designer hires you to shoot their backstage privately. I worked with Isabel Marant, Lemaire… I remember sitting at the table with Christophe Lemaire, thinking: ‘What is my life?’ I was a 22-year-old South African girl — and I was somehow part of this world.”

“She was this incredible presence — always a glass of champagne and a rollie in hand,” Katinka says of Isabel Marant, who I feel is truly one of the most chic women to have ever existed. “There was this moment after one of her shows where we locked eyes and I just knew — she was saying, ‘I see you.’ There was a kind of unspoken respect between us as women, across very different worlds.” That mutual respect extended into creative trust, “when Isabel asked me to shoot her party in a Studio 54 kind of way, I said yes — but on one condition,” Katinka notes, of the cheeky hubris often only afforded to us by youth, “I told her I needed my own barman and champagne on tap, because the only way to really capture that energy was to become one with the crowd,” Katinka grins. “It worked! I got the shots, and I had the most fun doing it.” 

Continuing the lore, which has me in a grip, Katinka notes with a shrug, that “I crashed Vogue’s 100-year party in Paris,” as if it’s the most casual thing in the world. “Ulrich told me, ‘You’re Katinka, you can get in anywhere.’ I didn’t have an invite, but I was standing there with Self Service in my hand, looking the part. The bouncer let me through and gave me a VIP wristband — later I found out they can get fired if they don’t recognise someone important enough. So he must’ve thought I was someone famous! Next thing I know, I’m in VIP with Lenny Kravitz, drinking Veuve from stemless glasses and dodging oversized joints. It was insane.”

All photography courtesy of Katinka Bester
Behind the madness and the magic, there were also moments that left an impression for different reasons. “I saw a girl faint backstage once,” Katinka recalls. “The models were so painfully thin — thinner even than they appear in photos. We tried to feed her, but she refused. That moment stuck with me. Fashion is beautiful, but it’s also brutal and it’s not real life.” As Katinka emphasises, she is a natural child; and to be back, rooted in Cape Town, was a non-negotiable. Bearing the dual afflictions of enchantment and emptiness — as the world of fashion is only too masterful at imbibing us with – Katinka returned home. “I came back with zero regrets. After everything — my mum’s passing, the whirlwind overseas — I just knew I wanted something more rooted,” she reflects, “I started investing in property, building a life where I didn’t have to rely on anyone. That was important to me, having grown up with very little. I’ve always had a good head on my shoulders, and I just wanted to build security for myself.”

Now based in Cape Town, Katinka finds herself at a creative crossroads, balancing the weight of experience with a longing to return to instinct. “The industry today feels… difficult,” she says, candid as ever, as I’m learning Katinka’s disposition is a full expression of refreshing honesty. “There are so many platforms, so many expectations, and so little time for real craft. Sometimes I feel like I’m drifting away from the reason I started shooting in the first place. I’m trying to find my way back.”

If Katinka’s early career was built in the chaos of backstage fashion and global runways, her current work emerges from a deeper place; rooted in trust, intimacy, and a fierce devotion to the inner life of her subjects. “My work is a poetic dance to me, and I’m always interested in playing with light, colour, and, most importantly, my subject,” she explains. “Empowerment has always been a huge thread running through everything I do. For me, the process is actually more important than the final image itself.”

That emphasis on process is what sets Katinka apart, and it is the felt experience when viewing her images; “over the years, I’ve worked with so many people, sometimes those experiencing a photo shoot for the very first time. I approach each session with care, trying to gently uncover and decondition them — to help them find their own power. It’s a kind of beautiful psychology that I absolutely love being part of.” Ironically, for someone so adept at making others feel seen, Katinka finds visibility unnerving. “I’m probably a bit hypocritical because I’m actually terrified of the camera myself,” Katinka admits. “Interviews terrify me. But I have this enormous respect for the bravery it takes for people to show themselves in that way — to be vulnerable and open. For me, patience is key. I try to show my subjects how truly beautiful they are, even when they can’t see it yet.” It’s no small thing holding space for someone to reveal themselves. Whether through a lens or a conversation, it’s an intimate job and over the years, I’ve come to recognise it as my most essential purpose when interviewing: to create a space for someone’s truth to surface; unforced and entirely their own.

That mutuality is central to Katinka’s practice — a resistance to the industry’s more extractive tendencies. “Something I always keep front of mind is that whoever I’m shooting, it’s a mutual assembly of expression. My subjects are never objectified. That’s hugely important to me. In our industry, I think that’s often missed,” Katinka says. “To get the best out of someone, you have to attune to their needs — not expect them to conform to yours. That’s a big misconception that I see a lot.” Even in Katinka’s personal projects, nothing is fixed. “I never really know how an image is going to come out,” she says. “I might have an outline, but I almost never stick to it rigidly because the shoot is always a mutual creation. It’s that openness and shared expression that makes the work so meaningful.”

While people remain her favourite subject, Katinka’s gaze is also always toward land, light, and the strange and beautiful world of nature. “I reference paintings a lot, and often try to see landscapes in an abstract way. I notice shapes, light, and the animals that seem to emerge from those forms,” Katinka explains. “As a typical Cancerian, I find emotional depth in nature — it’s where I often go when I’m feeling low or depressed. For me, photographs are the way I give back my inner world.” Cancerians are the zodiac sign known for an almost permanent immersion in the watery depths of the emotional body, intuition and nostalgia; glancing through Katinka’s work, this foundation is entirely traceable throughout. 

I ask Katinka whether she’s always had an eye for seeing what others might not be able? “I think I’ve always had an eye for it,” she responds, “Even as a child, I used to comment on the world around me — the surroundings, the details. That sensitivity has stayed with me and continues to shape how I see and capture the world.” Katinka is an intermediary between moments that existed and those of us who were not there or couldn’t see it; as I’ve said before, there is something shamanic when photographers are able to collapse time and reveal presence. This is witch-work, baby. 

Right now, Katinka is on a break and involved in personal projects as she confronts the existential crisis that commercial work has stirred in her. As an antidote, she began offering her services free of charge to local brands — with the only prerequisite being that she could be conceptually involved. This act of service can be wholly transformative for a brand. As Katinka muses, “Photography is expensive — I would know!” — adding that these collaborations have led to some of the most gratifying work she’s done in recent years.

Then there’s the recent shoot she did with stylist Liza Lombard, one I’ve been returning to on a near-daily basis to fawn over. While Katinka might be feeling jaded in some ways, I suspect she’s at the threshold of being in her element; and as her life has demonstrated, she will know where she needs to be, and what she needs to do. As is customary for CEC, I ask Katinka for her words of wisdom; “the most vital thing is to trust your own artistic voice,” she says. “We all draw inspiration from others and we all love to reference, and that’s important — but your personal reference, that inner voice, is your creative identity. That’s what sets you apart.” Katinka is also a firm believer in mentorship and acts of service. “Keep teaching. Keep inspiring. If someone reaches out to you, take the time to respond. It’s your responsibility to share what you know and help build the community. No one else can replicate your image — not exactly, not fully — even if it’s of the same subject, so don’t guard your creativity. Generosity is part of growth.” 

I know that I can be flippant with my use of the word ‘iconic’, but in this context, it couldn’t be more apt or true; Katinka Bester is iconic, in every sense of the world – may we all be as comfortable in the mountains as we are backstage (or in the thick of our places of chaos), and may our inner dualities always guide as to build our most exceptional and beautiful lives. 

Written by Holly Beaton

For more news, visit the Connect Everything Collective homepage www.ceconline.co.za

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Good Good Good x Calla Debut a Zero-Waste Capsule for SS26

Jul 25, 2025 | Fashion, Community

For SS26, Cape Town-based brand Good Good Good introduces new shapes and colours to its ever-growing zero-waste ‘Strip-Stripe’ Capsule. The brand also launches its debut collaboration with Parisian footwear brand Calla, made with colourful fabric offcuts from the past 10 years of Good Good Good collections. The ‘Strip-Stripe’ Capsule is Good Good Good’s latest solution to work with fabric waste from the regular T-shirt and fleece production runs at its 30-year-old heritage manufacturing facility, Together MFG, based in their home city. 

Good Good Good founder and creative director Daniel Sher joined his mother-in-law’s manufacturing business in 2016, where he started producing for his own brand alongside a number of other independent South African labels in a small rented portion of the factory. Six years later, Daniel moved his manufacturing service out of his mother-in-law’s factory, right after Together MFG was selected as the sole South African manufacturer for Christian Dior’s 2022 collaborative collection with South African LVMH Prize winner Thebe Magugu. Having soaked up invaluable amounts of experience and expertise from his mother-in-law, the factory had established itself as one of the country’s most prominent boutique clothing manufacturers, and Daniel and his factory felt ready to move out.

All photography courtesy of Good Good Good, by Luke Kuisis

Along with their machinery, all of Good Good Good’s offcuts, which had been stored and hoarded since 2016, also accompanied the team in the relocation of their factory. It is from these offcuts, as well as newly produced waste, that the ‘Strip-Stripe’ Capsule is made. For SS26, Good Good Good offers patchwork T-shirts cut from 100% Southern African-sourced cotton single jersey and a selection of other garments cut from premium French terry fleece in the brand’s seasonal colours. The manufacturing process behind these garments is arduous. With meticulous attention to detail, offcuts are selected by hand and cut down to their desired shapes, including linear strips, blocks and diamonds. Strips need to be sewn together two at a time, then ironed straight to avoid bowing, before being added to the greater piece of ‘Strip-Stripe’ fabric. Eventually, the piece of ‘Strip-Stripe’ fabric is large enough to cut the panels of the garments from. The garments are finally cut, made and trimmed, one-by-one, in some of Good Good Good’s core silhouettes, including the Heavy T-Shirt, Clubhouse Jersey, Hoodie, Drawstring Shorts and Balloon Trousers. Each ‘Strip-Stripe’ garment is completely unique. While some strips are set to fray, adding character as the garments are worn more, they are constructed to last and maintain their shape. 

For Good Good Good’s debut collaboration with Calla, on the other hand, the brand selected offcuts from its first 10 years of collections, which have been composed of colourful textiles produced by some of South Africa’s most prominent textile designers and mills, including homeware textile mill Mungo and designer Benjamin Nivison. After placing her namesake ready-to-wear brand on a hiatus, Calla Haynes’ collaborative spirit inspired her to seek out artisans in Morocco and to start the “The Boucharouite Project”:  initiatives that focus on two key themes of Sustainable Design – recycling textiles and supporting traditional craft. Good Good Good is pleased to be able to contribute to this project by sending its offcuts to Marakech, Morocco, where Calla’s network of artisans cut and wove them into rugs before cutting them into panels and making a small run of babouche slippers from them. As is the case for Good Good Good’s ‘Strip-Stripe’ Capsule, this collaboration is a sustainable solution to curb fabric waste that is both considered and beautiful.

 

All photography courtesy of Good Good Good, by Luke Kuisis

Join for the in-store launch at Duck Duck Goose from 10am – 6pm on Friday 25 July, 120 Bree Street. The Launch Party will also be held on Saturday 26 July at One Park from 7.30pm – late, with music from Foetal Position and Full Inbox. 

 

Lookbook Credits

Photographer: Luke Kuisis

Stylist: Erin Simon

Make-Up: Saskia Buxton

Models: Tanya Slater & Max Melvill

 

Press release courtesy of Good Good Good 

 

For more news, visit the Connect Everything Collective homepage www.ceconline.co.za

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Samthing Soweto’s ‘Touch Is a Move: Good Morning’ is Out Now

Jul 25, 2025 | New Release, Music

Samthing Soweto is back with his long-awaited second album, ‘Touch Is a Move: Good Morning’.
The album title draws from his personal philosophy and ritual. “Touch Is a Move” echoes a rule from games played in childhood: once you touched a piece, you had to make the move – no hesitation, no take-backs. It’s a phrase that grew to reflect a way of living with courage and decisiveness. “Good Morning” was born from a simple ritual Samkelo began in 2023 – a daily greeting to his online audience that became a method of maintaining community and connection. Together, these phrases speak to the album’s intention: a decisive exploration of how simple rituals, words, and connections shape who we become.

The album unfolds like an ordinary day in Soweto, beginning with the crescendo of an early morning and winding down into the late evening’s reflections. Told through a blend of interludes and songs, it follows a day in the life of five-year-old Samkelo in the early 1990s. We are introduced to uMama, uGogo, bhut’ Lungisa, sis’ Amina, and sis’ BhiBhi through his eyes. We hear his thoughts, see his world, and witness the wonder of living across different generations in his home. The voice of young Samkelo becomes our guide. And although in real life he is the third of four children, the album returns to a time when he was “iqanda lakubo” – the last-born.
These memories are not only presented as nostalgic flashbacks but as vivid threads woven into the fabric of the present.
Running alongside these interludes is a collection of love songs, each one exploring a different dimension of love: romantic, familial, complex, vulnerable, playful, and much more.
 
Listen to ‘Touch Is a Move: Good Morning’ here 

Connect with Samthing Soweto:
Instagram: @samthingsoweto
Facebook: @samthingsoweto
X: @samthingsoweto
TikTok: @samthinsoweto
YouTube: Samthing Soweto

Press release courtesy of Sheila Afari PR

Raz and Afla release ‘We Taya’ Remixes

Jul 25, 2025 | New Release, Music

Wah Wah 45s are proud to present ‘We Taya‘ (DMX Krew Remix), the second in a series of remixes reinterpreting and celebrating last year’s Echoes Of Resistance LP, the sophomore album from Afro-electronic duo Raz & Afla. Raz Olsher and Afla Sackey converge worlds through their dynamic fusion of electronic and traditional African rhythms, forging a path that is as bold as it is innovative. Rooted in their deep-seated passion for music and cultural exploration, they seamlessly blend their distinct musical backgrounds to create a unique sonic landscape that captivates audiences worldwide.

Raz Olsher is a visionary producer and composer known for his boundary-pushing electronic soundscapes, bringing his expertise in blending diverse musical elements to the duo. His meticulous attention to detail and penchant for experimentation form the foundation upon which Raz & Afla’s sound thrives. Already part of the Wah Wah 45s family with his band Afrik Bawantu, Afla Sackey is an esteemed percussionist and vocalist with roots tracing back to Ghana. He infuses the duo’s music with rich traditional African rhythms and melodies. Afla’s virtuosity on percussion instruments and his soulful vocals add a visceral, organic dimension to their compositions, creating a mesmerising auditory experience that transcends cultural boundaries. Together, Raz & Afla defy genre limitations, seamlessly weaving together electronic beats, Afrobeat grooves, and intricate percussive textures. Their music resonates with a deep sense of cultural authenticity and a forward-thinking approach that pushes the boundaries of contemporary music.

‘We Taya’ is a standout single from the Echoes Of Resistance LP. In its original form it’s an uplifting and politically conscious piece with some serious dance floor bounce. Following on from the anthemic and hugely popular remix of ‘Shikor Shikor’ from BBC 6 Music’s Jamz Supernova and Sam Interface, renowned London based DJ, producer and engineer Edward Upton, better known as DMX Krew, tackles ‘We Taya’ with aplomb and comes up with a life affirming Afro-disco/house monster replete with vibrant guitars and sparkling keys. “It was great fun to let out my jazzfunk teenage self and play some Rhodes piano and a synth solo on this jam.” Edward Upton (DMX Krew)

With a growing discography that includes critically acclaimed releases and collaborations with musicians from around the globe, Raz & Afla continue to carve out their place in the international music scene. Their electrifying live performances are celebrated for their energy and the profound connection they forge with audiences, making every show a vibrant celebration of musical diversity

and unity. We Taya (DMX Krew Remix) will be part of the Remixes Of Resistance album project, released August 1st 2025.

 ‘We Taya’ (DMX Krew Remix) here 

Press release courtesy of Only Good Stuff

Babon present ‘Cacti Traveler’ and ‘Mirage’

Jul 25, 2025 | New Release, Music

Introducing their forthcoming debut LP ‘Tropical Desert’, which drops September 26th on Wonderwheel Recordings, Indonesian instrumental jazz outfit BABON present the album’s first two singles, ‘Cacti Traveler’ and ‘Mirage’.

‘Cacti Traveler’ is the story of an intergalactic journeyman who travels through a tropical landscape, uncovering the past and glimpsing possible futures. His journey traces the history of tropical development, from independence to the industrial revolution and modern life, moving from lush forests to a deserted wasteland. The brass melodies narrate the story, weaving through the air as life unfolds—each note capturing moments of wonder, sorrow, and hope. As the journey deepens, hip-hop-inspired beats emerge, echoing the steps of the Traveler. It all culminates in a spiritual jazz finale, a nod to the musical roots that continues to shape BABON’s sound.

‘Mirage’ (out July 25th) is a journey into the psyche of a man lost in a desert. Almost losing his mind, he continuously recollects himself in order to keep going. The song features prominent synthesizer melodies, a new sonic element which provides a glimpse into BABON’s future explorations. BABON’s hip-hop influence comes through in the song’s verses. Reverb drenched guitars and an emotional solo expresses the character’s inner turmoil as he navigates an expansive landscape.

BABON is an instrumental band from Indonesia consisting of Rayi, Wahyudi and Rori. Their sound weaves traditional Indonesian genres such as keroncong and dangdut with western and world music influences, such as middle-eastern-grooves and afro-funk. BABON’s songs tell stories of environmental degradation and its inherent human drama. In a live setting the band expands to a 7 piece. They describe the fusion of their unique sound and environmentally fuelled imagery as ‘Tropical Desert’ music.

Listen to Cacti Traveler and Mirage

Press release courtesy of Only Good Stuff

Art Themes || Theme Six: Paper Cuts

Jul 24, 2025 | Creatives, Art

Paper — ephemeral, everyday, yet deceptively fragile — is a material we often associate with impermanence. Yet, in the hands of artists, it becomes a powerful conduit for memory, narrative, protest and play. The following selection of artists, forming our next iteration of our bi-monthly art round-up, engage with paper not merely as medium, but as metaphor and method. Whether torn, printed, folded, stitched, or digitised, their works explore themes of identity, transience, nostalgia, and resistance. 

Some artists use paper to mine the past while others critique the present. All six artists reveal how something as transparent and light as a sheet of paper can cut deep, revealing hidden seams in culture and selfhood. In this roundup the line between the delicate and the incisive remains razor sharp. 

Maia Lehr Sacks (South African) 

‘Ventral’, 2025, folded paper

Maia is best known for folded paper sculptures, delicate ink drawings, and mixed-media works that blend craft, drawing, and environmental themes. Her work deeply engages with memory, repetition, and nostalgia: she repeats stitches, folds, or marks to evoke the cyclical nature of remembering in a meditative way, and to materialise traces of lived experience.

Her delicate origami sculptures are folded with rhythmic repetition, echoing the nature of recall, embodying time as physical form. Moving beyond traditional origami, Maia experiments with ancient and modern folding techniques that curve and shape 2D paper into intricate three-dimensional structures, blending fragility with strength.

For Maia, paper is not just a medium but a companion in the process of self-reflection and creative exploration. The repetitive act of folding mirrors the way memories unfold—imperfect, subjective, yet undeniably present. Her work captures this tension between memory’s elusiveness and the material certainty of paper.

Emerging from childhood experiments with paper folding to her current refined practice, Maia’s work redefines paper sculpture in South Africa. Her art is a quiet meditation on impermanence and persistence, inviting viewers to witness the beauty and complexity born from a simple sheet of paper.

Photography courtesy of the artist’s website and Instagram archives

Pam Puck (Italian-America) 

‘Think You Can Hurt Me? You Can’t Even Find Me!’, 2024

Pam Puck’s sculptures are built from paper mache, a material that brings together fragility and strength, playfulness and depth. Initially a ceramic sculptor, Pam uses the tactile nature of paper pulp to shape figures that are both humorous and vulnerable. Drawing inspiration from folk, outsider, and medieval art, their work mixes mythology with personal experience—touching on themes of mental health and sexuality.

As a fluid and unusual medium, paper mache allows Pam to create imaginary characters like monsters and imps that feel alive and full of story. The handmade, textured quality makes these figures feel both familiar and strange, approachable yet unsettling. The way Pam builds up and shapes the paper mirrors the process of exploring hidden emotions and thoughts, encouraging us to look deeper still.

Photography courtesy of the artist’s website and Instagram archives

William Kentridge (South African)

‘Paper Procession 3’, 2023, Steel, Aluminium, oil paint

William Kentridge is best known for his politically charged works that combine sculpture, drawing, film, performance and theater. His multidisciplinary approach and intellectual depth have earned him international acclaim, including exhibitions at major museums like MoMA and the Tate. In Kentridge’s words regarding his practice, he shares, “How much do you glean from what you read, and how much of what you read is changed by what you’re seeing around it?”

In his exhibition, ‘What Have They Done with All the Air?’, William Kentridge returns to paper as a central medium — not just as a surface, but as an active stage for political inquiry and historical layering. Presented by Goodman Gallery, the works stem from his theatre production ‘The Great Yes, the Great No’, inspired by the 1941 Atlantic crossing of the Capitaine Paul Lemerle. Drawings on paper as well as paper as a texture on sculptures serve as both scenographic elements and narrative devices, layering character portraits, vegetation and fragments of political text. Kentridge’s manipulation of paper is reasserted as material presence, resisting disappearance. Paper here becomes a carrier of image, history, and metaphor, a tactile counterweight to digital removal and historical erasure.

Photography courtesy of the artist’s website and Instagram archives

Dima Yarovinsky (Tel Aviv)

‘I Agree’, Paper, 2018

Dima Yarovinsky is a multidisciplinary designer who pushes information design into the realm of political and societal reflection. In his artwork, ‘I Agree’, Dima uses paper to render the abstract mechanics of digital consent into a tangible, overwhelming form. By printing the full Terms of Service from platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Tinder onto scrolls of A4 paper in standard legal formatting, Dima translates invisible digital contracts into physical objects that expose the imbalance between users and tech corporations. Each scroll is laden with the number of words and estimated reading time, making the inaccessibility of these documents visually and spatially undeniable. Here, paper serves not only as medium but as evidence — a tool of confrontation and critique that reveals the scale, opacity and potential coercion embedded in everyday online interactions.

Photography courtesy of the artist’s website and Instagram archives

Lily Bunney (London)

‘Star (Complete)’, 2024

Working primarily on squared exercise book paper, Lily Bunney explores the intersection of analogue craft, digital aesthetics, and female intimacy. Her recent series, ‘girls peeing on cars’, uses pointillist drawing to depict scenes of women urinating between parked vehicles — a visual metaphor for informal solidarity and care between friends. Paper plays a structural and conceptual role: the grid underpins her methodical mark-making while evoking systems of order, repetition, and constraint. Bunney’s manipulation of paper — often layering it with plastic gems or low-fi materials — draws attention to the tension between sincerity and surface, intimacy and abstraction. Her work questions how images are read, filtered, and shared, positioning paper not just as support, but as interface.

Photography courtesy of the artist’s website and Instagram archives

Sitaara Stodel (South African)

“Four Walls” Collage Installation was part of RESERVOIR’s ‘Space Register’ group exhibition with UNTITLED, 2024, photography by Mia Thom and Slater Studio 

For Sitaara Stodel, who’s currently doing her MFA, paper is more than just a surface but a vessel for memory, identity and the instability of home. Working primarily in collage, she manipulates found family photographs and printed imagery, sourced from antique shops and markets, to construct intricate, deeply personal narratives. These paper fragments are torn, cut, and stitched to become a means of reckoning with a life marked by displacement. Having moved house over forty times, often into spaces her family could not afford, the transience of domestic space permeates her practice.

Paper in Stodel’s hands becomes fragile proof of a life lived in motion — brittle with age, soft with nostalgia, yet sturdy enough to hold reconstruction. She tears into scenes of suburban interiors, sea-facing homes, and glossy household objects, then reassembles them with gold thread, which could be seen as a deliberate act of remaking and re-owning memory. Each collage is a quiet act of resistance against erasure.

 

In tracing the edges of paper — its folds, tears, and textures — these artists reveal more than technique; they expose the fragility and resilience of the human experience. Paper, in their hands, is not passive. It holds memory, enacts resistance, reimagines myth, and reconstructs belonging. Whether through political critique, personal history, or formal experimentation, each artist demonstrates how this humble material can carry the weight of meaning and how, when pushed to its limits, it cuts through noise with uncommon clarity. In a world increasingly digitised and disembodied, these works remind us that even the most transient materials can leave a lasting mark.

“Four Walls” Collage Installation was part of RESERVOIR’s ‘Space Register’ group exhibition with UNTITLED, 2024, photography by Mia Thom and Slater Studio 

For more news, visit the Connect Everything Collective homepage www.ceconline.co.za

PULL UP, Broke’s Annual Car Boot Tour Is Underway

Jul 23, 2025 | News, Fashion

It’s that time again; Broke’s beloved annual Car Boot Tour is hitting the road, with six stops across the country. 

This is your chance to connect with SA’s most enigmatic collective as they roadtrip to meet their national Broke family. From vintage gems to community favourites, this is where you’ll find the very best of Broke, straight from their hands to yours.

Each stop promises music, beautiful people, unexpected link-ups, and afterparties that nourish the spirit in the depths of winter. 

Imagery courtesy of BROKE

THE TOUR STOPS

PRETORIA — 25 July

DRAMA PTA (Basement)
113 Burnett Street, Hatfield
3PM – 8PM
AFTER PARTY: PABLO, 440 Hilda Street, Hatfield

JOHANNESBURG — 26 July

Outside SWANK Workshop
70 Juta Street, Braamfontein
3PM – 8PM
AFTER PARTY: HOUSE OF YMZ – RSVP via @ymz.world

VAAL — 27 July

Amber Shisanyama
Zone 14, Sebokeng
3PM – 8PM
Street vibes only – no official afterparty

DURBAN — 2 August

Location TBA
3PM – 8PM

GQEBERHA — 9 August

Location TBA
3PM – 8PM

CAPE TOWN — 30 August

Location TBA
3PM – 8PM

Keep an eye out for more information via Broke’s IG. 

For more news, visit the Connect Everything Collective homepage www.ceconline.co.za

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Divine Alignment and the Art of Becoming: Inside The Creative Realm of LUUKHANYO

Jul 23, 2025 | Interviews, Music

Lately, I’ve been pondering the value of artefacts as we progress into an increasingly rented digital time. The fact that CDs, Vinyls, Blu-Ray DVDs and old laptops with CD trays are now collectors items (reminiscent of Y2K) is a daunting thought. 

I say this because the first time I heard LUUKHANYO, was through the aux-cable of my father’s analogue DVD sound system and the sonic experience of his hit singles “Hii Roller” and “Open Casket” had an unbridled flair of nostalgia that I wouldn’t have otherwise experienced on today’s “perfect” sounding Bluetooth speakers.

Known for his potent ability to blend contemporary R&B, Hip-Hop, Funk and Jazz, LUUKHANYO, with the utmost precision, is defining himself to be one of the most sought-after, free-spirited entities in the alternative music scene. His lauded songwriting results from an observant ear, sovereign craftsmanship and uncharted passion for capturing stories that ignite his imagination, which is evident in the creative direction of his music videos for his lead singles from his forthcoming album.

It was an interesting revelation when LUUKHANYO shared how “Hii Roller” and “Open Casket” were significant turning points in the album. He reflects: “So if you listen to ‘Hii Roller,’ it’s me arriving at this place where someone has broken up with me due to my own flaws, and instead of fixing my flaws, I’m leaning on the things that I think are going to correct it for me without me having to do all the hard work. ‘Open Casket’ is me achieving all these things that I think will fix this problem for me, and realising these things are not the answer—therefore I still need to go back to where I work on myself.”

 

Imagery courtesy of LUUKHANYO

That is the journey of alignment that has brought this album, scheduled for release later this year, to life. From his band “The Hii Rollers” shaping his musicality, to out-of-body experiences in Eastern Europe where non-believers could feel God in the room, to signing with an artist-centric London-based record label that prioritised the process that brings the art into being, community is at the heart of his evolutionary innovation. 

Honoured to share in his journey of becoming, I conversed with LUUKHANYO about who he is, the exploration of his creative mediums, the role of experimentation in his creative process and future plans. 

For our readers who may not know who you are, please introduce yourself and share your realm of creative expression. How was life growing up leading to your journey with music? 

LUUKHANYO: “You know, I’m trying to figure out who I am and what I do, and the answer changes occasionally. But as of late, the best way I can sum it up is I’m someone who finds a way to make ideas materialise.

Usually, I describe myself as an aspiring rapper, singer, or director, but if I take a closer look, I don’t think I do any of those things particularly well. I just sit in those rooms and work with people who help me shape the ideas in my head. Music has always been the gateway to that because I discovered my love and passion for art through music. As I grow and dive into it, I realise my passion is storytelling. I explore all the different avenues to tell stories without relying on music as the one medium.

Growing up, that inspired my desire to tell stories—I used to be very introverted. My mom is in the army, so I frequently moved between provinces as she transferred between bases. I struggled to connect because I arrived in environments I wasn’t familiar with, where people spoke a different language, and the culture was different. I found myself losing my voice and becoming introverted.

I found myself being an observer. I paid attention to people and always tried to find myself in a space before interacting with anyone. In doing so, I collected these stories without knowing it, shaping my desire to tell them. I’d see things from a broader perspective everywhere I went because I’d be exposed to much more. That, in essence, shaped my desire for storytelling.”

The music video for “Open Casket”, which you co-directed with Ruben Barkhuizen, is an astute example of cinematic mastery. How is the LUUKHANYO who writes the song different from the one who writes the script and develops visuals? How did Ruben’s contribution to the visuals enhance the visual story?

LUUKHANYO: “I don’t think I separate the two LUUKHANYOs—they’re the same person. It goes back to what I said earlier: I see myself as someone who makes way for these ideas to materialise, and I’m fortunate enough to work with people as talented as Rubin.

Rubin can walk into a location and just see the shot. He’ll know where to set up and the angle from which the lights will come. And while I see the final creative expression in my head, I don’t see the technical aspects. But he has the expertise—he’ll know when ideas clash and how best to compromise. That’s how he came in crucial when it comes to directing.

I co-wrote the script with my friend Orie, and once we had the story, I had an idea of what it would look like in my head. We encountered hurdles and obstacles every time we came into the room to bring these ideas to life. Rubin became clutch in those moments because he could problem-solve in real time. That’s why I credited him as a Co-Director—some of those shots wouldn’t have turned out like they did without his influence.

I’m just this one person who tries to not stand in the way of the idea. So I arrive with the overall vision, but I always entrust the people that I work with to help run with it.”

Is being able to experiment and delve into your creative freedom in its potent form what assisted you in shaping this album?

LUUKHANYO: “Yes. When I started creating this album, I knew what I was making. But as I was trying to make what I thought I wanted to make, the album turned out to be what I needed to make. That’s why I say I don’t know what I’m doing—I’m co-creating with something much bigger than me. I just learned not to let my ego stand in the way of that.

When something comes out very vulnerable, telling, and naked, I’m like, ‘Oh, I’m so scared. People are going to see me in this light and I’m going to look like a loser.’ But there’s a loser and a winner in all of us. We are not linear.

It was just a conversation with myself, assuring myself that being myself in all aspects is okay. It’s okay for me to put that out there and understand that I’m not only doing it for myself, but for the person who would have never gained the courage to do so if they hadn’t heard the music I put out. I want to give them the feeling that they are not alone in the vulnerability, fear, cringe, anger, sadness, and all the complex emotions we feel as humans.

In making the album, it was more about me learning about myself. The music was always there—it was really a portal to learning who I am and that it’s okay for me to be myself on these songs, unfiltered and unapologetically.”

Thank you for joining us for this interview. Before you go, let us know what the future holds for you. What’s next for LUUKHANYO?

LUUKHANYO: “I’m going to be rolling out another single within a month or so, then another single after that, and then the album comes. I don’t want to drop any dates if things change, but the album will release this year. I have many more visuals in store, and it’s also an adventure for me.

As I journey this path with the people joining me, I don’t know what to expect and don’t want them to feel like they know what to expect either. We’ll explore this thing together as we go. I just take it as it comes.

I’ve had numerous near-death experiences, and I understand that life isn’t promised, so while I’m here, I want to do things that matter to me. I want to do impactful things that can bring a lot of good and light into the world because we have so many things that do the opposite.

I look forward to seeing what the future holds. I’m just as clueless as everyone else, but I’m excited!”

Imagery courtesy of LUUKHANYO

Connect With LUUKHANYO

Instagram: @luukhanyoisart  

Facebook: @luukhanyo.luukhanyo

Tik Tok: @luukhanyoisart

YouTube: @luukhanyoisart

 

 

Written by Cedric Dladla

For more news, visit the Connect Everything Collective homepage www.ceconline.co.za

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FROM LAGOS TO THE WORLD: VOGUE BOYS KNOW HOW TO THROW A PARTY

Jul 21, 2025 | Lifestyle, Community

There’s nothing quite like the unity of African spirit — a rhythm, a joy, and a defiance that has the power to move people, literally and figuratively. In a time when global culture can feel fragmented, dance and nightlife has become one of the most powerful tools of connection. Enter VOGUE BOYS: a party, a movement, and a cultural force born out of Lagos, with a mission to bring people together through immersive and Afro-centric experiential events. 

Founded by creative brothers Ebuka and Chisom Nwobu, who are also the minds behind the media house Ladder, Lex & Booker, VOGUE BOYS was sparked spontaneously and now exists at the intersection of ancestral spirit and global nightlife. With their signature events bridging continents, most recently with a takeover in Paris, they’re channeling the essence of Nigerian celebratory culture into spaces that have long been overdue for its presence. In this conversation with CEC, Ebuka shares his take on authenticity, the power of movement, and why the world can’t stop shaking their nyash to African beats.

Imagery courtesy of VOGUE BOYS

CEC: Tell us a bit about yourselves, the founders and creators behind Vogue Boys. Why did you start this initiative and movement?

Ebuka: Vogue Boys started out as something of a happy accident. I [Ebuka Nwobu] and my brother, Chisom Nwobu are multi-hyphenate creatives who run a film and media production company called LADDER, LEX & BOOKER out of Lagos, Nigeria. In January 2020 we decided to throw an all expense paid new year beach party to celebrate the creatives and clients that had worked with us in 2019. The party jumped so hard everyone kept asking “when is the next party”. This made us realize that the events sector needed us badly and we’ve been feeding the streets since. Another happy accident, the name ‘Vogue Boys’ stuck after someone said it while congratulating us for producing a fashion film in 2019. The ‘Vogue Boys’ brand then became the vehicle through which we explored more wayward creative opportunities.

CEC: You call your signature event series “Dirty, Sexy Rave” — how else would you define the feeling of or describe a Vogue Boys night? 

Ebuka: We actually have two signature event series. One is a day to nighttime outdoor waterpark festival experience called SUMMER COOKOUT and the second is a nighttime indoor warehouse rave experience called DIRTY, SEXY RAVE. Both of these and every other event we host are similar in the sense that they’re designed to be unforgettable. The unique feeling people recall from a Vogue Boys party is the freedom to dance and express yourself without fear of judgment or harassment in an environment where every single element is designed to reimagine a contemporary Nigerian party by evoking themes and elements from ancient Nigerian culture.

CEC: From Lagos to Milan to Paris Fashion Week, what does it mean to you to export Nigerian party energy to cities that are likely not familiar with this coveted African culture and experience?

Ebuka: It means that we’re living out our purpose and doing our bit to put Africa on the world map of youth culture. Standing on that stage at the Triennale Milano and watching this huge crowd of Italians matching my energy, shaking their nyash [ass] to Rema’s ‘Booty Bounce’ and stomping their feet to DJ YK Mule’s ‘Oble’ reaffirmed that our brand of African lifestyle, culture and experience has just as much of a global appeal as our music and arts. We’re now even more committed to going harder to the point where we can command the kind of numbers our siblings in music are pulling in arenas around the world with our culture as the headliner.

Imagery courtesy of VOGUE BOYS

CEC: The masquerade dancer is part performance, part ancestral presence. Where do tradition and nightlife meet for you?

Ebuka: For me tradition and nightlife are one and the same because parties and celebrations are a core part of who we are as Nigerians. In Nigeria, every milestone is marked by some sort of party or celebration. As civilization has evolved and the locations of our various celebrations have changed, the spirit still remains the same. This is the idea behind incorporating the masquerade dancers in our raves. In my traditional Igbo culture, masquerades are representations of spirits that can be found in every major festival. For me they perfectly embody the spirit of our identity and our propensity for spectacular performance.

CEC: What goes into building a unique experience for mounds of people who come from diverse backgrounds and different parts of the world?

Ebuka: The most important thing is to trust your sauce/source. I have found that authenticity always wins. Only someone who’s tapped in and at peace with their identity can create a unique experience. Our goal has always been to design authentically African experiences and execute them to global standards, when we do this successfully nobody can resist us.

CEC: There’s an element of defiance in how you center Africa without compromise — please share more with us about this defiant energy and has global recognition changed your mission, or just made it clearer? 

Ebuka: There’s something about Nigerians, we think we’re the best in the world and nobody can convince us otherwise. How we look, how we dress, how we talk, how we dance? What’s not to love about us? I think this is where the apparent defiance comes from, I just love who I am too much to be anyone else. Anything else would be a downgrade and we don’t do that over here. 

The more global recognition we get, the more obvious it is that what we have is truly valuable and the more determined we are to find more efficient ways to tell our stories and represent our culture on the world stage.

If you’re looking to immerse yourself in the VOGUE BOYS experience, their ‘DIRTY, SEXY RAVE’ (DSR) series returns to the Nigerian cities of Lagos and Port-Harcourt this August, 2025. Then, DSR will return to Lagos monthly until December when they’ll climax with a 5 000 capacity festival edition coinciding with ‘Detty December’ festivities in Lagos – a final, euphoric reminder of the power of African unity.

Stay up to date with events and announcements via their channels below.

Connect with VOGUE BOYS on Instagram 

Watch VOGUE BOYS on YouTube 

 

For more news, visit the Connect Everything Collective homepage www.ceconline.co.za

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