Liberty Battson’s Ode to 20th Century Masters in her Latest Showcase, Yada-Yada Club

Jun 17, 2022 | Art

“Yada-Yada like Blah-Blah like Dada.”

“A persistent theme in Liberty Battson’s work has been the language of visual art. This latest body of work uses the iconic styles of major figures to engage with – and celebrate – modern art history.

The flat, colourful faces that make up ‘Yada-Yada Club’ draw on the languages of 20th century Masters. In a tongue-in-cheek postmodern overview, Battson acknowledges the impenetrability and opaqueness of their abstract and conceptual work to many people. Referring to a range of movements – from the Dadaists and Cubists to the New York School and Young British Artists, Battson aims for her viewers to recognise some of the silhouettes she has selected, and wonder about others.” – Lena Sulik for Everard Read Gallery

Liberty Battson has coined a new term for her latest showcase – “Art Gibberish”. What at first seems to be a cheeky omission from an artist as “nonsense” – is in fact, a playful and loving semantic note that describes for Liberty her strongest theme running through her career: that art is a language; a syntactic arrangement that is infinitely variable, and pursued through many mediums and styles, the same way dialects become regional and linguistic jargon develops out of subcultures. Known for her distinct style using precise lines in vivid colours, “Yada-Yada Club” is the first diversion we have seen towards a new landscape for Liberty – instead, this showcase is explicitly post-modern, and uses a variety of Liberty’s most revered artistic Masters of the 20th century as affectionate references; creating interpretations of works from artists like Dalí and Matisse, for the viewer to decode in a visual treasure-hunt. 

On this diversion, Liberty says “This is the first body of work where I’ve ventured away from stripes but I’m still dominantly attracted to hard edge, clean cut lines even though this time they are objects. I like controlling the paint, even when I am painting freehand I still aim to have control over the paint, I’ve made looser work and come full circle where I want to contain it again. It’s just an overflow of influence. I’m in awe of Abstraction and Modern art whose key principles are uniformity, structure and geometry – this was a great challenge and undertaking in a period where art was very realistic and pictorial. I approach art very mathematically, using data, stats, numbers, codes. I still had a mathematical approach by selecting specific subjects and arranging them into funny faces. I knew exactly how each one should look before I even touched the canvas.”

Using her distinguishing medium, 2k automotive paint, Liberty explains why this has come be her signature, against the traditions of oils or water-colours; “I’ve always been inspired by artists who push the boundaries of their chosen medium, such as when painters master the timing and viscosity of paint to get you questioning if it’s actually painted or when ceramicist work dangerously thin or sculptors who make hard materials look soft. It was important for me to use Automotive paint on a medium (canvas) to which it wasn’t designed and get the same finish as if it was painted onto car parts. It was important to me to master the material. I haven’t met many artists using it the way I do, therefore my work is quite recognisable. That’s the goal, you want to walk into a room and recognise the artwork before you go close enough to read the  signature. Even better to wonder how the artist made it, to get the viewer thinking.”

Encouraged by the artists referenced in Yada-Yada Club, Liberty remains committed to the pursuit of her own artistic development; and this mindfulness is perhaps rooted in her genuine joy and awe for the stylistic traditions that have come before her. Commenting on the exhibition’s affectionate tone, Liberty says, “These faces are made up of different Master artworks over the past decade, most with the theme of being anti-war, inspired by Dada. I hope viewers see the silhouette of one or more of these artworks or better yet see their own imaginary subjects. Kazi is the nickname for Kasimir Malevich who features in this artwork alongside Salvador Dalí, Alexander Calder, Philip Guston and Pablo Picasso. Gav is my nickname for Gavin Turk. In this artwork there is also representation of Yves Klein, Marcel Duchamp and Alexander Rodchenko. Néné is my name for René Magritte, who starred with Edvard Munch, Philip Guston and Yves Klein. Fridz is short for Frida Kahlo, one of few women artists represented here, alongside Jackson Pollock, Damien Hirst and Henri Matisse.  It is always my intention to celebrate these Masters and show my close relationship with them, their impact on me; that’s what inspired the titles, as well as to link the personification so viewers could identify a face.”

Yada-Yada Club is on show at Everard Read Gallery Cape Town until 2nd July 2022.

Written by: Holly Bell Beaton

How Education and Communication Remain Critical with Fashion Writer Modupe Oloruntoba

Jun 16, 2022 | Interviews, Fashion

It’s rare to read interviews with writers as it is usually our role to be the interviewers and conversation holders. Something I reinforce in my own practice and periphery to the fashion industry is to always inquire about the people, teams and voices that weave together the web of these systems; and what can we learn or understand about how a space like fashion is shaped, communicated and understood – and thus formed into the cultural landscape that it represents. For this reason, having Modupe Olortuntoba on CEC for a conversation about her nearly decade long career as a fashion writer, editor and consultant is a personal one – particularly the experience of finding one’s niche in communication, when so much of the industry signalling relates to design as the pathway to creating in sartorial expression. Fashion publishing and media in South Africa has taken a huge knock in recent years, with many spaces closing completely and writers having to rebrand as copywriters or digital story-tellers; and while this conversation is not about a preference for print, it is most certainly a testament to the deep sense of curiosity, analysis and description that the writers bring to the industry. 

‘’I studied fashion design at CPUT and developed a complicated relationship with fashion design. I started to lean into media at the time, I think in some ways to maintain a closeness with why I was doing what I was doing – reminding myself of what brought me to the place of studying fashion. I was really into Style.com and their work at that time, and Business of Fashion – and when graduation came up, I was feeling really unsure about design and really excited about media – I decided that was going to be my plan. Build up contacts, work at glossy magazines and then perhaps go back to design. Content has stuck, though. I found my lane and the medium I had a lot to say about; I felt like I could fully embrace this tool. Writing about fashion, rather than producing it, has never wavered in the last eight and a half years.” Modupe says, striking a resonance with my own experience of dropping out of fashion school in my early twenties; my inability to draw, remain focused, and mixed with a myriad of other personal reasons led me to find another way to relate to this deep sense of passion I had for fashion and design. Fashion education in South Africa is heavily focused on producing designers; and not everyone is meant to design, and very few tend to “make it” in that way (a story for another day), and it’s a conversation I’ve had many times with various people about this idea of education for developing a career in fashion; ‘’I was an AFI (African Fashion International) intern for fashion week at the very beginning of my studies and career. That week was pivotal for me, because I was exposed to the rest of this whole world; I was able to see the many hands that go into what we receive as “fashion”. The whole system really fascinates me, and I don’t think fashion education serves the system too well – but it’s a double-edged sword. With so little to “study” about fashion here in South Africa,  a vast amount of people come into the industry with varying perspectives and disciplines that they’ve studied. I mean, some of the world’s best fashion designers were never trained in a traditional fashion schooling system. So you get this very interesting mix of people who find their way to fashion, and I’m not sure you’d get that if there was a fashion-focused way to learn everything that can be done within the ecosystem. On the other hand, I think it makes it very difficult for young people to know where to begin. I hope we see more variation and options for what is available to people wanting to study.”

Defining “education” in this context is important, particularly regarding the inaccessibility for many to formally study – with designers like Lukhanyo Mdingi speaking to us earlier this year about his emphasis on mentorship – on this, Modupe says “I would love to see a return to apprenticeship. For all we say about schools, many who do study fashion end up graduating and have nowhere to be entry level. Nowhere to learn from the ground up. I think our understanding of education as a broader term for developing and refining skills is a more robust way to view it – I just came from Rich Mnisi’s office, and he has an assistant / intern – and it’s great to see contemporary brands being able to hire and foster young people. I would love to see a wider spread return to prioritising development.” 

In November 2021, I attended Rewoven’s incredible indaba Future of Fashion – a yearly exploration of African sustainability and circularity. During one of the talks, I was struck by Modupe’s question to panel – and her articulation of a conversation I hadn’t heard anyone ask about the business of fashion in South Africa, and how can brands be transparent as a guiding road-map for what it takes to build both a creatively and financial healthy label or enterprise; the business of fashion, truly, and the financial acumen it requires. ‘’I think there’s this idea that creative people don’t have to mind themselves with business, yet these are functions that are central to running a business. I wish it all would be about creativity – but it’s not, it’s about trade. Trade is maths. We are in a great time for it, too – there’s short courses in abundance. I’m very curious in talking to designers as business-owners, right now – and the idea that we can shift the idea that creativity exists in a silo, independent of the economic structures we live in. I want to see more support for creatives, in general, to have their art live in the world that is valued in the way other industries value their own products.”

With the launch of African Fashion Weekly, Modupe’s newsletter is a space in which she explores these questions; focusing on a the markets of South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria as key points in the continent’s fashion industry, “I’m asking these kinds of questions for the first time, and the designers and other ecosystem players are answering them for the first time, and because we haven’t had this angle regularly covered, these questions about strategy and profit and hiring and funding seem really invasive. So along with training myself, my interview subjects aren’t huge listed corporations who legally have to share quarterly earnings reports, and I have to find a way to get these independent businesses on board with a similar level of transparency to make this a real value add for the industry.” 

This is hugely important work; and Modupe is a voice that is so critical for nurturing the immense growth and spotlight we have seen in South African fashion, and the continent at large. A reminder that there is not only a space for everyone but rather a deep need for minds like Modupe who see so implicitly into the heart of our sartorial landscape. 

Follow and subscribe to @africanfashionweekly to read more of Modupe’s work.

 

Written by: Holly Bell Beaton

Southern Guild Presents ‘Spring Awakening’ – A Study On The Dissolving Boundary Between Art and Design

Jun 14, 2022 | Art

“The concept for Spring Awakening arises from the idea of spring as a time of intense ecological, physical and psychological change. Curator Lindsey Raymond invited artists to consider the role of renewal and growth in their work, as well as their opposite – loss and decay.

“In springtime, the future is a thing that gleams within palpable reach like a ripe fruit ready to be plucked from a tree. It signifies the starting growth of a new harvest, while occupying the liminal space between a year almost passed and a year yet to come. In this way, it is a time of reflection as much as it is a willingness for a future ideal,” Raymond notes.” – southernguild.co.za /// show notes.

Presenting artists:

Adam Birch           
Andile Dyalvane
Cheick Diallo           
Christine Jacobs
Chuma Maweni     
Dokter and Misses
Dominique Zinkpè    
Ghada Amer
Githan Coopoo        
Jeanne Hoffman
Jozua Gerrard        
Justine Mahoney

Lea Colombo  
Lezanne Viviers
Madoda Fani        
Martine Jackson
Navel Seakamela    
NØDE
Porky Hefer            
Rich Mnisi
Rodney Band            
Shakil Solanki
Shirley Fintz           
Sisonke Papu
Talia Ramkilawan

I often wonder if the categorisation between designer and artist is merely a semantic technicality – determined by the “functionality” of the outcome, or body of work presented by either designer or artist. Attending gallery spaces such as Southern Guild, particularly their recent / current group show “Spring Awakening” – I find that this distinction or separation is further challenged, particularly as it makes clear that whether design or art; all creative pursuits are inherently functional – as essential contributions to the lived experience of being human, all of us leading lives marked deeply by our visual senses and aesthetic tastes. 

Since 2008, Southern Guild has pioneered South Africa’s collectible design positioning in the world – providing support, infrastructure and curatorial development within the country and continent. As with Spring Awakening, the intention to invite a wide range of creative artisans, from fashion and furniture designers, to printmakers, ceramicists, fine artists and weavers – continues to build a profound lexicon centred on design as the channel for many mediums, and profound story-telling. In this way, our creative landscape paints an encouraging picture; one that is cognisant of the plurality inherent to local self and collective expression.

Highlights of the showcase were perhaps every piece exhibited, by the 25 artists. Malian designer Cheick Diallo’s tie-dyed, curved cabinet is an homage to the daily trade of West African cities, while Shirley Fintz’ eight ceramic totems held the central space in one part of the gallery room. Referencing the Hindu and Buddhist teachings on the energy centres held within the human body –  her figures reference the archetypes of healing in both spiritual and physical contexts. Shakil Solanki’s Drape My Hopes Upon The Chance To Touch Your Arm I, takes the figure of Ophelia and translates her essence into the delicate silk folds of a sari, ornately painted to depict a languid arm reaching downwards within its soft surroundings. In a similar vein of intimacy, Jozua Gerrard’s Coming Down relays the tenderness between two lovers, specified as an interracial couple, which for the artist is a subtle invitation for society to to accept love across seemingly differences.

Githan Coopoo showcases My First Urn, a deeper exploration of his practice centred around the vessel – this time, delving into the symbolically rich construction of the “the urn”. The QR code description, ascribed to each piece, contextualises Githan’s vivid ombré urn and plinth, “The artwork invites a conversation around Western attitudes towards death and denial by the living. ‘’Death is, in itself, a fortune, a life’s only guarantee or promise amidst a universe of uncertainty’’, Githan states,’’ in this way, it is also a universal fortune, one that we all share, one that binds us.” 

Rich Mnisi presents a special edition titled, Nwa-Mulamula’s Chaise – Vutomi (Life) – a curved chaise held by the swirling greens akin to the abstract print in the fashion designer’s Mafamba Yexe fashion collection. Mnisi continues his inquiry into Bushongo mythology, the pattern depicts the purge Bumba – the god who birthed the world – representing his purge in the rich shades of grin, swirling like prima materia of universal creation. Talia Ramkilawan’s signature medium of tapestry across a wooden frame is seen in the magnificent Text Me When You Get Home, a continuation of her subversion ‘’against the stereotypes of her lived experience as a queer Indian woman.’’

Fashion designer Lezanne Viviers presents two pieces – But-a-Body, a garment made from the rejected, offcuts leather of the high-end fashion industry, is both a personal reflection of the self and a commentary on Lezanne’s situational relationship with the excess of the fashion industry, one in which waste and rejection of materials and bodies continues to dampen the experience of true artistic expression. The fabric is overlaid with a printed image of Lezanne herself, naked and bent, contrasting herself with animal bones. Grotesque and mesmerising – I stand, once again, in awe of Lezanne and Viviers Studio as an immense site of sartorial expression.

Written by: Holly Bell Beaton

Ruzza Wazzi Teases His Upcoming Visual Album; Made in Johannesburg

Jun 13, 2022 | New Release, Music

Made in Johannesburg is a protest-visual album by Ruzza Wazzi conceived to interrogate social issues on topics of racism, immigration and the persistent dream for something better. The visual album themes were further reinforced by an incident where a white man ran over Ruzza’s foot with his vehicle and drove off with no apology – upon attempting to open a case against the perpetrator at Parkview Police in Johannesburg, the police refused to open a case citing Ruzza’s injury was not severe enough. This is a problematic historic narrative that needs to be challenged as the Black-body continues to suffer through arbitrary public policies.

The visual album was written, produced and directed by Johannesburg-based artist Ruzza Wazzi draws inspiration from the city he knows intimately. The story is set in an abandoned building in Hillbrow downtown Johannesburg – provides a peek into his psyche, and relationship with people and places, the visual album, therefore, becomes an emotive conversation rooted in the journey of self through music, space, movement, costume, and imagery.

The visual album reflects on what it means to continue one’s pursuit of dreams while they and The world around them is in a constant state of flux. The narrative unfolds in a building that was once inhabited by people, now empty and dilapidated yet still holding memories, it becomes a timeless site of remaking- recreating out of seeming destruction and displacement. This is a context that is familiar to those who travel from their homelands to achieve their dreams in cities around the world. They must face the unknown, the unfamiliar, and the chaos of constant change, finding integration and making all of this work to fulfill their dreams.

/// Watch the prelude to ‘A Visual Album’ by Ruzza Wazzi:

 

Self Affirmations /// A Round-Up of Top Collections Form the South African Runways

Jun 10, 2022 | Fashion

Each designer interview for this story was conducted separately, yet their thoughts on the relevance of runway presentations read like a panel discussion at a fictional South African Fashion Convention. “A fashion show is an important touch-and-feel point for a brand” says Neo Serati. “I think the online world is extremely oversaturated. Fashion week provides a platform to ensure optimal focus and attention on one’s work,” says Artho Eksteen. “Seeing the audience connect with the presentation is priceless,” echoes Nyambo MasaMara. “We use the shows as a deadline: something to work toward on the yearly calendar,” explains ALC’s Brendan Sturrock. “Having physical interaction with various industry players and connecting directly with the community is a big plus.” Up-and-comers Jacques Bam and Thando Ntuli double down on the importance of community in building a robust industry that allows new talent to germinate and grow. 

News of a merger between two of South Africa’s three major fashion weeks underscored this season’s collections. SA Fashion Week remains in Johannesburg, while SA Menswear Week, now expanded to include womenswear under #WeekOfFashion branding and a CTFC graduate showcase, happens in Cape Town. What exactly this will mean for the industry, no one can say for sure. But two fashion weeks is far better than three: this consolidation, unimaginable in a pre-pandemic world, should enhance the community benefits designers find so valuable. 

The standout collections are, to varying degrees, designer autobiographies. MasaMara, this season more than ever, is a modern manifestation of heritage. House of Waalid and Artho Eksteen tell childhood stories through the use of rich, unexpected textiles. MUNKUS pieces are designed not only to stand the test of time in terms of quality, but to be styled to suit various generations of women. The BAM Collective and Nao Serati investigate clothing as a catalyst for evolving identity, while Amanda Laird Cherry provides potent positivity, down to the last seam. 

 

Amanda Laird Cherry

The Amanda Laird Cherry team, a 28 employee-strong studio in Durban, have endured heightened adversity over the past few years with the region’s headline-making environmental and political woes. For them, the key to self-preservation is finding joy, which was interpreted for the runway in various takes on dopamine dressing. “The choice of garment shapes, seam angles and proportions make us feel positive and motivated,” says designer Brendan Sturrock. 

A central point of inspiration is the abstract squiggles in an artwork by toddler Josi Currie that informed the collection’s playful abstract prints. Ultra-saturated block colours served as potent shots of energy, and the balance between easy-wearing and theatrical designs speaks to a need for expressive style that doesn’t sacrifice comfort. “I think we all have apparel in our wardrobe that generates genuine happiness,” says Sturrock. “As a design house, we feel we have the responsibility to make those things for people.”

House of Waalid

As the saying goes, you need to know the rules before you can break them. Mohammed Waalid is a fashion lecturer at Villioti Fashion Institute in Johannesburg, a perfect position from which to design a collection inspired by the Japanese concept of wabi-sabi: finding the beauty in imperfection. “The collection explores all of these technical nightmares,” says Waalid of the intentional overlocking, exposed seams and uneven hems that gave his collection its grungy through line. “It’s the imperfections that add value and create difference.”

Waalid’s fabric choices have direct autobiographical significance: “the rustling of taffeta makes me go insane. It’s one of my favourite sounds.” The upholstery leather pieces that bookend the collection reference the designer’s father who owns furniture stores and restoration workshops. “As a six-year-old kid, I would watch Videofashion before I went to school,” says Waalid. “I love fashion with all my existence.” It follows that his runway debut had to be a play on the traditional haute couture formula: “the finale has to be a bride, but I love the idea that this was a menswear collection and yet we still had a bride. It’s very tongue-in-cheek.”

MUNKUS

Each MUNKUS look is named “Me” in a different South African language. There’s Me, Mina, Nna, Mna, Nne, Mine, and the finale, We. This is designer Thando Ntuli’s runway debut and a love letter to South African women. Distinctive takes on contemporary closet staples from suiting to shirt dresses are energised with a treasure map-inspired print in hues representing life and growth. The collection’s flared silhouettes feel both modern and like a throwback to mid-century femininity; “it is based on closing a generation gap,” says Ntuli. “The looks have layered pieces that allow each woman to wear it the way they want. My goal was to help women find themselves by giving them an extension of their personality.”

Sustainability by way of longevity is an integral component of the design process, which plays effortlessly into this collection’s narrative. Using sturdy recycled denim as a key fabrication allows Ntuli to create quality, durable pieces she intends her clients to pass down to the next generation. Her effortless amalgamation of conscious design with a strong aesthetic point of view makes her a worthy recipient of SA Fashion Week’s 2022 New Talent Search award. “Winning has shown me how important authenticity is, to be true to my design style and storytelling through my clothing,” says Ntuli.

Nao Serati

Fans will notice a fascinating recalculation of the Nao Serati style equation. Since its Menswear Week debut in 2016, the brand has been at the forefront of expanding the masculine clothing spectrum on the local runways, enriching it with feminine design codes. This year’s collection flips the script: choosing to explore overt masculinity through a camp lens that both revels in its aesthetic appeal and exposes its artifice. 

“I went into this collection wanting to challenge myself to focus on silhouettes, colours and feelings,” says Neo Serati. “We open with sequins to remind you who we are, styled masc in a floor length coat, but the coat opens to reveal a matching G-string.” The collection thrives on its exhibition of varied, tactile fabrics: “we have some bruised brown PVC because we love a challenge. Then we warm up with some blood red velvet drama and end with a bouncy brocade because we’re going to church on Sunday.” 

The soundtrack, Runaway by Ye’s repetitive opening E note, built tension and conjured a sense of unease in the show venue. “NAOSERATI’22 is called SELLO, which means the sound of crying in Sotho,” qualifies Serati. “I wanted to discuss the feeling of forgiving someone who took their own life: the darkness you experience but also the understanding of a pain relieved.”

Artho Eksteen

“I would define a forever piece as one that is not only ‘forever’ in traditional ways, for example timeless, well made and classic, but also something that has a more sentimental place in your wardrobe,” says Artho Eksteen. Last year’s SA Fashion Week New Talent Search winner, the young designer is a master of thoughtful eccentricity, creating narrative-rich trophy pieces to treasure for trend agnostics who identify with his surrealist world. 

A sense of the personal is key to Eksteen’s collection, inspired by the textiles of his childhood home. Unique custom prints (where else can you find a floral dress with an outburst of aliens amongst the blooms?) set the tone for beads, embroidery and appliqué techniques that add depth and enhance quirk. “I enjoy embracing the organic development of a collection and to see how this influences the final result as samples are being completed and unique fabrics are being produced,” says Eksteen. “Things are added and taken away in the process—I think it’s quite fun not to know exactly how a collection or garment is going to turn out.”

The BAM Collective

Jacques Bam had an aesthetic vision for his collection prior to rediscovering the Fauvist movement of the early 1900s in an art history book. The emotionally driven renders in deliberately unnatural hues resonated with the designer, fuelling his design process. Partial abstraction of the subject is the connecting factor between Henri Matisse’s 1905 paintings and Bam’s 2022 clothing, the latter a feast of curves and swerves in electric hues, substantial knitwear and iridescent sequin mesh, morphing the human form like a fashionable funhouse mirror. 

“I think it takes a certain amount of confidence to wear my clothes,” says Bam. He’s looking to push the boundaries of commercial clothing, shifting consumer thinking by allowing people the opportunity to use fashion as a tool for personal growth. “Exploring clothing has been invaluable in creating the individual I am today and has given me incredible confidence and surety in who I am,” says Bam. “That is what I want: a world where everybody is allowed to grow and become the best version of themselves in a way that is really fun.”

Masa Mara

“I hope this collection will be a reminder of those who came before us, for we are the vessels of their love, courage and bravery,” says Nyambo MasaMara. Nyambo is a pseudonym based on Inyambo, the long-horned cow of great cultural significance in Rwanda, the designer’s homeland. The printed ‘horn’ headpieces that punctuated the show embody MasaMara’s heritage, a nod to his work as an interdisciplinary artist that brings a perfect level of showmanship to the runway. Autobiographical elements help the designer feel in touch with his mother, who passed away in 2020, and who this collection is dedicated to. “My love for fashion, textiles and everything creative comes from my mom and grandfather.” 

This cathartic manifestation of ready-to-wear showcases talent both inherited and developed. A MasaMara print draws from various African cultures, aligning the meaning of colours and symbols with a collection’s narrative. This season’s prints, “inspired by royalty, loyalty, and humility,” are presented on a holistic rotation of real-world clothing that balances contemporary suiting with Insta-ready streetwear (puffer jackets, yes, but also quilt-stitched puffer skirts) and a simple, standout column dress. Audience enthusiasm reverberated through the show space, prompting cheers, tears and a standing ovation. That energy cannot translate in its entirety to the social media frenzy that follows, a testament to the relevance and vitality of fashion week.

///
Image credits:
House of Waalid, Nao Serati, Masa Mara: Simon Deiner @sdrphoto
Amanda Laird Cherry, Artho Eksteen, MUNKUS, The BAM Collective: Eunice Driver @eunicedriverphotography
/// Written by: Daniël Geldenhuys

Striving for Greatness with Dee Koala

Jun 9, 2022 | Interviews, Music

To amass success and a following in the way Dee Koala has, it’s easy to wonder what kind of performance or projection of an alter-ego it would take – surely one could never scale the ladders of fame by being irrevocably oneself? Except; this is precisely what Dee has done, and continues to do. Totally herself, in every single moment, Dee Koala is an artist of the rarest and most authentic kind; a being congruent and genuine to her very core both on stage and off. In everything she does (and in our conversation), tempered by vulnerability and the tellings of a come back (although Dee has never really left) illustrate what it can mean to push for your wildest dreams and to have the goal posts of those dreams shifted at almost every turn. Since her school days writing verses from the classroom, to the anchor that she now represents to kids and elders alike in her neighbourhood of Khayelitsha, Dee’s purpose on this earth has slowly been revealed to her – specifically, when she abandoned rapping in English, and stepped into channel her mother tongue, isiXhosa, as her tool for expression. In this moment of an almost spiritual arrival, Dee’s voice commands a future trajectory not just for herself, but for every kid in South Africa to whom dreaming is critical. Encouraged and mentored by the late, great Riky Rick – Dee’s shows what is possible, and as she goes onto tell me in our conversation – what is possible, is not always easy. One thing about Dee? She will always be speaking her truth; and she does this almost daily with her IG ‘Lives’ for her 214k (and counting) followers.

In asking Dee about what it means to reflect back, looking at her younger self writing raps to her role now as an artist & performer, she says ‘’You know, when you start this thing with excitement – it’s driven by that feeling you have about music, that always felt so close in your heart but somehow far away through the TV – and what you see is people having money, being happy and always having fun. With that signalling, I thought it was going to be my best life. I started writing in English, I even have an EP in English which most people don’t know about, but it wasn’t enough for me. There was this whole part of who I am – in my deepest core – that needed to come out and that switch to Xhosa is what made me speak the way I wanted to be heard. That taught me that it’s not just about the message -it’s about the delivery; it’s about how you say the things you need to say.” This switch is the kind of action that writes the future; the kind of move that cynics (and such) would say is bad for business; with English being a predominant language in the world, and it’s a ridiculous fallacy to be successful is to fit into this narrative – and as the homies of experimental band Off The Meds show, winning a Swedish Grammy in isiZulu is possible; it’s already happened. Dee goes on to say, “It was for my hood – I wanted messages to get through to them. The moment you speak English in Khayelitsha, it’s ‘you’re not for us’ – and in Xhosa, they were hearing what I was saying. The whole family is included and involved, then. I’m not doing this to appease some people who can’t speak my language – if they like it anyway, that’s amazing, but my focus is my hood and my people, and expressing to them the sounds of who we are as people. The crazy thing is, people who don’t understand my language do love it – they love my flow, and the energy, and that’s how music is; it’s more than just the words, it’s the whole experience, layered together.”

A big part of her career has been an unbreakable relationship with adidas – who dressed her for a Sportscene campaign early on, “I think they liked the way I dressed their pieces. I’m not a typical sponsor baby, I put a bit of me in it so it’s not just adi head to toe. My favourite is mixing thrifting with adidas pieces, and now I’m in my fourth year with them. Two years ago they made me an ambassador, which has been such a great joy. I do deserve that – and the love is so mutual, it’s shown me the power of relationships in the industry; and how music and fashion are so closely linked.” Even in this, Dee expresses how she shows up as herself, always. With an almost insatiable demand for artists to adopt cycles of trends and styling that reflect what the brands want from influencers, Dee shows brands what they need; to have representatives that bring their garments into real, lived contexts, “I’ve seen one thing happen in my hood, that people noticed I was wearing a lot of adidas. In Black culture, the 16th, 25th and 26th of December and the 31st and 1st is when kids beg their moms to get them the biggest drip ever. It’s the school holidays, it’s festive. On the 16th one year, I walked outside and I saw a ton of kids in adidas tracksuits – so many! And they’re saying to me “Dee, jonga, look!” and pointing to their fits. Even adults were fitted out. This one old-timer, whenever it’s a Saturday and he’s heading to a local tavern, he’s got his tracksuit on and his Stan Smiths, he always comes past my house – ‘how you feel about my drip?’ – it’s wild to me. They gave me a nickname – Ndida – which is the Xhosa slang for adidas. I don’t know, that’s some kind of influence.”

Although the last few years have been a rise to success for Dee, these years have simultaneously been tormented by deep losses. Dee’s decision to share this with us is marked by her belief that one has to share the whole story; not just the glory, but the full picture – so her followers and community know that life is always this polarity and dance, that success cannot always keep the pain at bay; “Two years ago my mom died, and I thought I was going to be fine – that I would just grieve, and get on with it, you know? The show must go, type of mentality. Except I couldn’t grieve – I wasn’t sad – I just couldn’t be alone. So I was going out everyday, taking people out because I needed to be around people. I was drinking a bit too much, and then my grandma died – and then a month after that my great-grandma died, and a month later…my two aunts. All the women in my life, one after the other. These were all the moms of the family. I didn’t know how to handle that, it was like all the strength in the family had left in the space of six months, and I was on my own. Alone, in a way I didn’t know was possible. I wasn’t able to show up – my professional conduct started slipping – and then, the final blow was the onset of writer’s block. I couldn’t string together a single verse. I was heart-broken, and it’s like I had left my body.” It’s that age old understanding of being alone, even in a room full of people – that sometimes, we are all we ever have. Yet with Dee, there is a love for that is hard to articulate – an impact that she has wherever she goes.

Dee, unable to formulate the concept of a song and marked by sorrow of an unknown kind, spent times in the studios crying through, terrified that this may never pass. Dee goes on to say, “I used to be a cutter, and I was so scared I would turn to that self-harm again. I didn’t want to be depressed, or feel defeated. Looking back, I didn’t have patience for this moment now, and there is light now. I feel myself coming back. It’s something you can’t see in the darkness, something which we never know until it’s too late – you know, I spent hours on the phone with Riky talking about the deepest parts of life, and he was an older brother to me; he really put me on, on stage and flying me to Joburg and was the closest person to me in this industry – and yet when he passed, you just feel so desperate because you want to say to the people you love – just hold on for a little longer, the light is coming – this will pass. He saved me from dying so many times. And I think we all realised it wasn’t just tough for us, alone – everyone is struggling. His passing could have broken me, but it did the opposite – it made me grab hold of this gift God has given me again, and promise to embrace every single moment that is ahead for me.” 

Dee’s biggest shift has been the commitment to allow herself to feel her emotions; all the hurt, and all the joy, and everything in between. This, for Dee, is about living life to its fullest – and letting her life and career be a testament to truth. This alchemy, and her new relationship with someone who shows her the gentleness and protection she needs, has meant that Dee is ready to embrace the bumps. What comes next is Dee’s continued contribution to South African culture and beyond, “There’s a renewed dedication in me. We have music videos coming, creative work – a new voice over deal – and just a crazy journey ahead. Most importantly though, is my relationship with my supporters and my family – whether it’s in my hood, in my studio, or on social media and at shows – it’s for them, and for me. I have enough energy and love for all of us.”

Written by: Holly Bell Beaton

Vogue Nights Jozi, Celebrating Expression and Euphoria with Genesis All Black

Jun 8, 2022 | Art, Fashion, Community

If you’ve read some of my articles before – you’ll know that I am the biggest advocate for the creative economy. Maximising our arts & culture sector in order to progress the entire economy is extremely important, yet continually overlooked by many, especially the government. What the easing of lockdown has led to within our local nightlife scene is beautiful to witness; a flourishing party scene which continues to innovate in order to elevate, and ‘Genesis All Black’ is a perfect example.

As a first-of-its-kind collaboration between Vogue Nights Jozi, KOP and Until Until, the event proved to be a massive success – a euphoric trance into the true meaning of Jozi’s nightlife.

Serving as a tasty prelude to Pride Month, our celebration of the existence and contribution of the LGBTQIA+ community, Genesis All Black proved a fitting pre-gathering for Johannesburg’s Queer community. Hosted on 28 May 2022 in the eclectic Newtown area of Jozi, with the support of Johnnie Walker and Heineken as sponsors, this event produced a roster of incredible local artists and performers. In a wall-to-wall line up of local talent, led by the likes of Blxckie and Reece Madlisa and Zuma, accompanied by a plethora of exciting deejays such as Fiflaaa, Skits & Nkuley, and more.

The 360-degree focus on art, in its entirety, is the pinnacle for the betterment of our nightlife scene. Genesis All Black clearly got the memo over here because there was indeed a big event focus on the arts scene, with emerging fine artists such as Bemo Doll, Gabriel Stephen, and more, all on showcase with live installations. A couple of months ago, I wrote an article for CEC touching on the parallels I discovered between Joburg’s current art scene and SoHo, New York, in the 1970s. A lot of the thoughts which I had conjured up within that think-piece seemed to resurface after witnessing the outcome of Genesis. An example:

“A key element that drove the success of the “party scene” during this era of 70s New York was the thriving queer Black community. Now fast forward over fifty years from then and analyse Johannesburg – has much really changed from then? I think not. Topical queer and femme-forward events such as Vogue Nights, by Lelowhatsgood, further reinforce my point.”

Another massively enjoyable aspect of Genesis All Black was the return to festival culture. It’s so refreshing to see the large festival-esque signs and banners at venues once again, with live performances from artists gleaming from the stage lights. And with popular local festivals such as Rocking the Daisies returning in full swing following Covid absences, it seems that the space is opening up for independent creative organisations to cultivate their own large-scale events.

Vogue Nights Jozi, founded by eponymous award-winning cultural curator, writer and Deejay, Lelowhatsgood, is at the forefront of reinventing and redefining South African queer culture through tastefully curated ballroom events. These are inclusive and are centred around dance, music and fashion. It reminds me of how aptly Siwa Mgoboza described it in relation to his art fair, ‘Siyabangena’.

“Siyabangena22 is an afterparty that pertinently considers South Africa’s relationship of political discourse and collective organising as shaped in the shebeens of Black townships during apartheid. It considers how the existence of ball culture was founded underground by African-American and Latin American LGBTQ+ communities – “Houses” – in New York City in the late 19th century, resisting queerphobia. These disco sites serve as robust incubators of radical discourse about questions of the Human, where a reading of sound, performance, and collective organising are grammars of certain philosophical positions of being.”

Another topical independent creative organisation teaming up with Vogue Nights Jozi for Genesis All Black is ‘Until Until’ – represented by the duo of Thulani Dandala & Lenzo Mangonyane. Until Until hosts a few of the hottest events in Johannesburg, such as Sunday Roast, i.e.”The Happiest Place on Earth”, Bacardi Holiday Club and Good Morning. There is a consistent thread between all of these curated events and that is their emphasis on redefining comfort and prioritising inclusion.

The final creative partner to complete the trio is KOP represented by its co-founder Amira Shariff – a youth-driven creative space and platform redefining the culture of music and art. What I enjoy about KOP is their retrospective perspective towards nightlife culture, and how they are able to transfer this ethos into contemporary event spaces.

The combination of these three creative brands clearly makes so much sense. As nuanced as their vision and missions are, they somewhat all congregate at the same corner. The true intersection of local youth culture – where all forms of art converge into one. Genesis All Black has executed a giant leap for our arts & culture scene, depicting the true essence of what a collaboration is meant to be.

Written by: Odwa Zamane

Roses Are Red Releases “Nothing Lasts Forever” Fear & Self Loathing Remix

Jun 6, 2022 | New Release, Music

Cape Town based record label Roses are Red release a remix of “Nothing Lasts Forever” by South African production duo Fear & Self Loathing.  

The original track from Rose Bonica is reworked into an energetic and explorative sound, taking a different approach to the original track, they explore an area of experimental music that is a fusion of Breakcore, Juke, and hints of Jungle.

Already grabbing attention on shows such as BBC’s Radio 6 with Mary Anne Hobbs – a true sound journey and sensory overload is what you can expect from this remix. 

/// Listen here: 

Spotify 

Apple

Deezer

CEC Exclusive Video Premiere: “Give it all” by Luh’ra Featuring Andy Mkosi

Jun 3, 2022 | New Release, Music

Cape Town based singer/songwriter Luh’ra shares the poignant music video for “Give It All”, the first single release from her upcoming EP. Known for inviting her audience in to contemplate the tenderness of their own emotions, Luh’ra uses this track to explore the experience of women around the world that fall into maternal ways of giving entirely of oneself with little to no return, whether expected or not. 

With Andy Mkosi sharing a rap verse, the narrative of “Give It All’’ evokes the experience as seen through both a masculine and feminine perspective.

“As women we often fall into our maternal ways of wanting to give our everything to the ones we love, which can often be at the expense of our own well being. In Give It All, I get into the mindset of what it can feel like giving your everything to a situation that does not give back the same in return. Andy Mkosi shares a rap verse on the track which adds more of a narrative perspective to what that sort of situation could look like. 

The music video follows this narrative. Self styled in local brands, I tried to create different characters through fashion to express the different emotions that we go through. Innocent in pink, a calm and present bystander in burgundy, angry in black.” – Luh’ra

WATCH BELOW:
https://youtu.be/XzaN–TIew0

 

/// Credits: 

Give It All @luh.ra ft. @andymkosi 
Directed by @andrealoupis
DoP @baz_bailey and Co DoP @nicloupis
Edited: @nicloupis
Hair and Make Up: @dazedfay_ 
Styling and Creative Direction: Luh’ra 
Dancers: @issyagirlq and @isabelladelimaaaa 
Talent: @luh.ra , @kigalichristian 
DoP Assist: @pending_pending_pending_ 
Wardrobe with special thanks to: @wanidaboutique , @betterhalf_thestore , @trotse_tert , @jungli.cpt  
Recorded @concept_records
Released by The Good Times Co.

Genre-Bending Namakau
Star Presents Her Debut EP, Landing; An Ethereal Ode to Freedom and Flow

Jun 2, 2022 | New Release, Music

Namakau Star has come back stronger than ever with a tribute to authenticity and freedom, packaged in a 7-track EP, ‘LANDING’, that releases today. The first single in her repertoire, “Rewind”, leads up to her EP that was released earlier this year, with “Seazn Luv” following, through Paradise Sound System.

An eclectic bouquet of sound and influence, each track pays tribute to Namakau’s unique mix of Hip Hop and R&B. Her sound is delivered with a combination of soulful lyricism and vibrant instrumentals. Namakau Star is a singer-songwriter and rapper who weaves effortlessly between spoken and sung while the production of each track adds to the soulful experience one can expect from this innovative artist.

The foundation of Namakau’s musical journey began as “iindirhe” under which she debuted the GLTTR EP, a prelude to what was to come with her reemergence as Namakau Star and the much anticipated LANDING EP. Known as the “Vibe Goddess” by her loyal supporters, Namakau Star promises a sonic journey of sound with this new body of work and fans and industry stakeholders alike should brace themselves for a futuristic kind of sound, complete with broken barriers and blended genres.

///

Follow Namakau Star on Social Media 

Instagram

Twitter

Facebook

Youtube

Tik Tok 

Tumblr

 

/// Stream ‘LANDING’ on 

Apple Music

Spotify