Get to Concerts for a Cause in CT
Spend a lazy Saturday Arvie in Cape Town in February supporting a good cause and enjoying local sounds. CONCERTS FOR A CAUSE kicks off with the first in their series of concerts at The Range in Tokai, on Sunday the 3rd of February 2008, with top SA acts Freshlyground, the Rudimentals, and Bed on Bricks.
The concert series is aimed at raising funds for The Heart of Healing, an NGO committed to creating sustainable business solutions to social and environmental issues problems in South Africa. With a large portfolio, and diverse range of already developed solutions, the team of venture philanthropists now intend using a portion of the proceeds from each event towards the ongoing musical training and mentorship of disadvantaged, young artists, who will then be given the opportunity to showcase their talents alongside the bands headlining the events, providing visible feedback on how funds are channelled.
Headlining next month’s laid back Sunday afternoon concert is MTV Award-winning Freshlyground, with their vivacious, catchy melodies and deeply introspective ballads. Their perfectly ultra catchy hit ‘Doo Be Doo’! is a favourite amongst a diverse spread of radio stations and their listeners, and the single, “I’d like”, also from their second album, the platinum-selling ‘Nomvula’, held the No.1 position on the 5fm charts for 3 consecutive weeks, and saw them playlisted on every station in the country. Freshlyground, made up of seven talented and diverse musicians from South Africa, Mozambique and Zimbabwe, is one of South Africa’s most successful young acts. They exude a live performance energy that has been the bedrock of their success, and seen them playing numerous music festivals including the Harare International Festival of the Arts, the North Sea Jazz Festival, the Villa Celimontana Festival in Rome, the 2005 Expo in Japan, the Robben Island African Festival, and the big Oppikoppi ‘Wired’ festival. The band, who bridge historical divides and defy musical stereotypes, were also asked to play before President Thabo Mbeki at the opening of Parliament on the eve of celebrating 10 years of democracy in South Africa!
Next up, The Rudimentals bring you their blend of Pan African Ska, dance-hall rap, dope Reggae Rhythm and vintage Ska – with a dash of Jazz and the Blues. Their live shows have captured the imagination of everyone who has seen them, blurring age, taste and social group boundaries – from the Cape Town International Jazz Festival, to UB40, Vortex trance parties, and everywhere in between! They thrive on the fact that they defy musical genre categorization and are proud to carry the “unique” label. Having spent a considerable amount of time at the top of the SA MP3 charts, as well as receiving extensive radio play on both regional and national radio, their second album, Set It Proper, received rave reviews all round, and took the band straight back to the top position on the SA MP3 download charts, and saw them embark on a national tour with reggae legends UB40, before hitting the festival circuit.
Adding to the afternoon’s entertainment, Bed on Bricks is a funky eclectic mix of “Cape Tonianisms”, and a unique feature on the South African musical landscape. Although their sound is not easily defined, nor genre specific, they are a regular feature on the main stages of the country’s major music festivals, and have a diverse and fanatical following. Its part reggae, part African funk hop, mixed with free flow improv and melodic vocals. Since their formation in early 2003, they have released two studio albums ‘Humanarium’, which won SA Rock Digest’s “Best Song of 2003”for the same titled single, and ‘If You See Kay’, as well as a live acoustic album ‘Takeaways’. Their third studio album ‘Royal Honey’, scheduled for release early this year, is said to be a mellower album, and will be showcased at the concert.
Get your tickets now for an afternoon filled with the finest music and entertainment, and be a part of growing the country’s hidden talents.
Tickets available from Computicket outlets countrywide, www.computicket.com and 083 915 8000.
