25th Battle of the Giants All Styles Dance Festival.
Mar26

25th Battle of the Giants All Styles Dance Festival.

Let the energy and rhythm of dance captivate you at South Africa’s premier dance event, the 25th Battle of the Giants All Styles Dance Festival between Friday 11 April and Sunday 13 April at Sun International’s Sun City Resort.   Under the aegis of the South African Dance Teachers Association Stage Branch, the event presents a kaleidoscope of dance forms attracting amateur, championship and professional dance entrants from around the country.   Dancers will compete in Freestyle, Slowdance, Ballroom and Latin, Hip Hop, Showdance, Street Dance Show, Disco Dance, Jazz, Breakdance and Electric Boogie. The Stage branch has opened a para category for disabled competitors as well.   The audience can expect to see a visual feast of colourful, glamorous costumes, dramatic make-up and the dynamism, passion and energy of dance, coupled with expert choreography and dancing.   The high calibre judging panel reflects the importance of the Battle of the Giants on the dance calendar. Judging this year’s contest are Kirsten Dan Jensen from Denmark  who serves on the Presidium of the International Dance Organization, along with a leading panel of South African judges including David Jones, Rudi Smit, Diana Moore, Pacou Mutombo and Craig Bullock to name a few.   The Festival is also a springboard for talented entrants who go on to achieve even greater recognition. The current World Freestyle and Slowdance Champion Kalon Badenhorst is one such example.   According to Bev Wood of the South African Dance Teachers Association Stage Branch, “We encourage each and every participant to reach their goals and strive to reach new heights in their dancing achievements. I know that the dancers will create another spectacular and successful Battle of the Giants and at the same time, climb the ranks of World dancing.”   Each day of the Festival dancing will begin at 9am. Tickets are available from Computicket at R75 per person per day, and R80 for the Grand Final on Saturday evening. Discounts are available for children under 12.   For more information about Sun City’s special accommodation packages contact Dreams on (011) 217 5555, or E-maildreams@suninternational.com or log into www.suninternationaldreams.com.   DATES             Friday 11 April to Sunday 13 April 2014 TIMES              From 07h00, dancing starts at 09h00 daily. Grand Final at 19h00 on Saturday 12 April 2014 VENUE                        Sun City Superbowl TICKETS          Booking at Computicket. Tickets from R75 daily, R80 each for Saturday night, discounts are available for children....

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Bastille SA Tour Sold Out!
Jan06

Bastille SA Tour Sold Out!

BASTILLE TOURS SOUTH AFRICA. PRESENTED BY NOKIA. POWERED BY 5FM. With just days left until UK chart-topping band, Bastille, lands in South Africa for the very first time, Nokia and 5FM are thrilled to announce that the Johannesburg concert date of 11 January 2014 at Emmarentia Dam is officially sold out. The two Cape Town dates of 8 and 10 January 2014 sold out just weeks after going on sale. With Johannesburg selling out, all three of Bastille’s South African performances will be seen by 25 000 South African fans who have been waiting patiently and eagerly to see the UK hit-makers live. Emmarentia Dam will see Bastille take to the stage alongside local talents Bed On Bricks, Matthew Mole and Beatenberg to a capacity audience who will enjoy a day out in the open to witness the sheer brilliance of all the acts on the biggest stage structure ever set up thus far on the African continent. Bed On Bricks will open for Bastille in Cape Town. ‘Things We Lost In The Fire’ has been a recent hit on 5FM and this along with their other hits ‘Pompeii’, ‘Laura Palmer’ and ‘Overjoyed’ will echo through the beautiful and natural settings of Kirstenbosch in Cape Town and Emmarentia Dam in Johannesburg. Line-up times Cape Town: 8 & 10 January 17h00: Gates open 19h05: Bed on Bricks 20h20: Bastille 21h30: Concert ends Johannesburg: 11 January 11h00: Gates open 12h00: Matthew Mole 13h30: Beatenberg 15h00: Bed on Bricks 16h30: Bastille 18h00: Concert ends About the tour venues and dates: Bastille tours SA takes place on Wednesday 8 January and Friday 10 January at Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden from 19h15. There will be no bars so fans can bring their own picnic baskets but are reminded that Kirstenbosch is bin free – whatever is brought in must be taken out. No glass may be brought into the concert. Fans are also asked to respect the peace and cleanliness of the residential areas when leaving. Saturday 11 January is a day festival at Emmarentia Dam from 12pm.  There will be food and drink on sale, and people can also bring their own picnic baskets. No glass may be brought into the concert. Children are welcome at both events. Cape Town: SOLD OUT Johannesburg: SOLD OUT #BastilleSA https://www.facebook.com/SeedExperiences https://www.youtube.com/weareseed1 @SeedExperiences https://www.facebook.com/NokiaSouthAfrica?fref=ts http://www.nokia.com/za-en/ https://twitter.com/nokiarsa www.5FM.co.za www.facebook.com/thepowerof5FM www.twitter.com/@5FM Bastille links: http://bastillebastille.com/ https://twitter.com/#!/bastilledan http://www.facebook.com/bastilleuk...

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5th Season in Concert.
May15

5th Season in Concert.

On Sunday the 26th of May 2013 come experience the premium voices of 5th Season live at Afriportico Restaurant the BAT Centre, Durban . The concert begins at 2pm with a cover charge of R30. Find more details after the jump. 5th Season was established as a jazz trio in 2010, but also plays regularly as a quartet and occasionally invites a vocalist on stage with them. You will see this all at the BAT Centre restaurant on Sunday 26 May. All band members are jazz musicians with an academic background from UKZN. The band plays a wide range of well-known jazz standards and contemporary tunes while adding their own flavour. The band has many performances on their name, such as Grahamstown National Arts Festival, The Rainbow Restaurant and the 5th BRICS Summit. The tight rhythm section of 5th Season consists of brothers Devon (drums) and Brayden (bass) Hore. Also part of the band are Mthunzi Mchunu an experienced guitarist and talented piano player Ndumiso Ndlovu.  Vocalist Janice Joseph will join the gentlemen for a few songs with her warm and clear vocals.  Lastly vernac rapper Manelis will also be on stage for a nice musical...

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Zakes Bantwini & Flavour To Rock Durban With Snoop Lion.
Apr18

Zakes Bantwini & Flavour To Rock Durban With Snoop Lion.

Durban/Lagos, 18 April 2013: South African house sensation Zakes Bantwini (@ZakesBantwiniSA) and Nigerian high life guru Flavour (@flavournabania) are to join the “all star” line-up at MTV Africa All Stars – KwaZulu-Natal, the sensational open-air concert brought to you by MTV Base (DStv Channel 322) and KZN Province. Bantwini and Flavour will join US entertainment icon and multi-platinum hip hop star turned reggae artist Snoop Lion (@SnoopLion) aka Snoop Dogg, at the 5-hour open air concert at the stunning Moses Mabhida Stadium, People’s Park Durban on 18 May. After his continental smash hit “Nwa Baby Remix” and his massively successful collaborations with Tiwa Savageand Fally Ipupa, high-life artist Flavour N’abania, aka Chinedu Okoli, continues to be Africa’s most requested artist, regularly collecting frequent flyer miles whilst jetting across the continent and as far afield as USA and Europe.  He’s also become a regular fixture in Dubai and the Far East. Zakes Bantwini is without a doubt South Africa’s most prolific live performer: there is not a single stage in South Africa that this music mogul and leading light on the SA music scene has not killed! His songs “Wasting My Time”, “Bum Bum” and most recently “Karolina” have been burning up airwaves across the continent and have all been remixed by some of the biggest names in house. Speaking on behalf of MTV Base, Alex Okosi, Senior Vice President & Managing Director, Viacom International Media Networks (VIMN) Africa, commented, ‘We are delighted to welcome two such popular artists as Zakes Bantwini and Flavour to Durban’s shores for MTV Africa All Stars – KwaZulu-Natal.  With Snoop Lion already confirmed, all eyes are going to be focused on KwaZulu-Natal as we put our hearts and souls into making this the music event of the year!” MTV Africa All Stars – KwaZulu-Natal will air on MTV Base (DStv Channel 322) and partner TV stations in Africa from Saturday 25 May 2013 (Africa Day). More details of MTV Africa All Stars – KwaZulu-Natal, including additional performers and ticket prices and outlets will be announced shortly. To find out more about the MTV Africa All Stars, please go to www.mtvbase.com, join us on Facebook atwww.facebook.com/MTVBaseVerified, or follow us on Twitter @MTVBaseAfrica, using the hashtag#AfricaAllStars. Gagasi FM is the official radio partner of MTV Africa All Stars...

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Represent Review: Joy of Jazz 2009
Sep06

Represent Review: Joy of Jazz 2009

Represent shimmied in amongst all the Friday night jazz cats last weekend down in Newtown, Johannesburg at the Standard Bank Joy of Jazz 2009 festival – see our photostory here and read our take below from our team Nkateko Siweya and Hloni Ditse – Sharpile guys! : It’s a Friday just after rush hour traffic – it’s the last winter weekend and there’s no sign of a cold wind or rainy clouds, I wonder why… A long stream of cars flows past in an absolutely uniform precision, going in the opposite direction. Where are they going? People are supposed to be going home at this hour! Well not these music lovers… Mhhh, maybe all these people driving towards downtown Joburg might know that something interesting is about to go down.  I’m also heading downtown, Newtown to be exact, past the dim highway lights, to arrive at a light and bubbly (no direct relation to Champagne) scene of blue and white lights: the 2009 Standard Bank Joy Of Jazz. I step into a mass of people of all ages, walking and mingling as if it were a holiday: we are in Jozi, the city that never sleeps. Such energy and excitement is derived from just being out and about in Newtown, Johannesburg city and it can be felt and witnessed by each face that makes up this buzzing crowd. One thing you are never short of in Joburg is a fashion parade, from the young funky attires to the mature elegantly dressed- that on its own is an art form unique to Africa’s greatest metropolitan. Our bright colours call out loud: “Welcome to the southern spring season!!” The stages are set, the guests are here, the weather is clear and warm we are out and about in an era brimming with talent and skill. The stages in Newtown boasted the most adept and diversified jazz and soul musicians from many a corner of the globe. This is one time I wish I could replicate myself just for the night so I could get to fully immerse myself in the simultaneous happenings on all four stages. I would soothe myself with the foreign and blissful featuring artists like Room 11, Somi, Brian Thusi, Level 99, MAG, Minor Band, CJC, Live Rhythm, J4Dot, Solace and Soul Tique and the many more who showcased their talent at great length. Even though my self- morphing into four of me didn’t go down, I did manage to catch a few of the legends in action, from the very appealing Judith Sephuma’s soulful choruses to Unathi Nkayi who was just having a wonderful jol with the...

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