Mary J Blige new dates
May12

Mary J Blige new dates

Here are the new dates (we thought we’d wait a bit before posting them) The new dates will see the Queen of Hip-Hop Soul, kicking off in Johannesburg at the Coca-Cola Dome on 18 October, before heading to Durban’s Westridge Park Stadium on the 19th followed by the Bellville Velodrome in Cape Town on the 21st of October 2007.  The tour which was set to kick off in Johannesburg on the 12th of May was postponed in order to accommodate a routing change on her world tour. Tickets already bought for the May dates are valid for the new dates. ********************* What a letdown – Mary J Blige’s concert has been ‘postponed’ – boohoo – we await more info but here’s the official PR for now: MARY J BLIGE POSTPONES UPCOMING TOUR METRO FM, Edgars Music Series and Big Concerts regretfully announce the postponement of Mary J. Blige’s highly anticipated South African tour. The tour which was set to kick off in Johannesburg on the 12th of May has been postponed in order to accommodate a routing change on her world tour. NEW TOUR DATES will be released early next week. “Edgars has had a profound effect on the music scene for the past seven years through Edgars Music Series (EMS), its sponsorship of music events both on a national and international scale in South Africa. It is unfortunate that the tour has been postponed, and Edgars would like to apologise for any inconvenience caused to Edgars’ customers and Edgars Music Series supporters. However, both Mary J Blige and keen EMS supporters can still look forward to a fantastic showcase once the dates are established,” says Dineo Sobantu, Events & Sponsorship Manager for Edgars Chain. “As media partners for the Mary J Blige tour Metro FM welcome the fact that tour is still going to take place later in the year and hope that her fans and listeners have not been too inconvenienced,” said Bob Mabena, acting station manager Metro FM.. Tickets already bought for the May dates are valid for the new dates The South African media described her as having a “smouldering stage presence” during her April 2000 concerts in, which saw her performing to 48 000 ecstatic fans countrywide. Critics and fans alike will be floored by her powerful combination of modern R&B with an edgy rap, and electrifying live performances when she performs in South Africa in October. For further information log on to: www.edgarsmusicseries.co.za or www.bigconcerts.co.za ****************************** “Well I hope she’s better than last time” has been the wary comment from two of my friends and “WHOOHOOHOO” from everyone else that heard that the...

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Wallpaper* City Guide to Cape Town out!
May09

Wallpaper* City Guide to Cape Town out!

On our recent trip to Tokyo I was delighted to pick up a copy of the Wallpaper* guide to Tokyo “the fast-track guide for the smart traveller” (published by Phaidon).  I don’t know how smart we were but we only had 5 days to check out this supacity so we needed a lot of help.  It worked.  We managed to see some mind-blowing spots which we would never have found without it… the Wallpaper* City Guide suggestions are so well selected that walking into one of the recommendations is like walking through the pages of the magazine, they just ooze Wallpaper* finesse and style.  While we’re delighted for Cape Town to have been included in the second bunch of cities (after the first 30 cities published) to be graced with the guide, our noses are a little out of joint as to why Jozi hasn’t got one yet.  Africa’s megacity! We love Slaapstad’s tasteful essence and incredible pizazz but we certainly have a number of hidden gems that would make the cut.  Apparently Johannesburg’s version will be out in the next batch of books published, we wait with bated breathe and hope like hell it’s not the same writers who put together the Timeout guide – it smacked of outsider writers who clearly knew very little about Jozi.  We’ve contacted the publishers and will let you know if there’s any more info.  Cape Townians – any comments on the content?? For now, you can buy your CT guide from Exclusives at R97.  Hang out in the Wallpaper* high...

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Support Michaelis 4th years CT tonight.
Apr26

Support Michaelis 4th years CT tonight.

Lovers of art in Cape Town support the next breed of artists coming through the ranks by attending the 4th year of Michaelis School of Fine Art students at their “early friday pub” fund-raising and networking endeavours.  There’s one tonight which is so early for a Friday it’s on a Thursday! Click on the flyer for more but here’s the scoop: We’re the 4th years of Michaelis School of Fine Art, it’s our final year and we need to raise money for a catalogue of essays and student’s work to be published at the end of the year. For this reason we have picked up on something that was started by graduates of a previous year – the early friday pub – which provides students, the art community (and anyone and everyone else, 18 and over) to network, party and shake their rump. Every week since the beginning of March Early Fridays have featured a different theme of music, DJs, dress code and other specials, while the tequila raffle has become a returning feature – lately forming part of an established artist’s special edition series (a future investment?!). We’ll continue Early Fridays throughout May, and possibly right till the end of the year. Upcoming Fridays are: Thu 26/4 – Early Early Friday: New Media DJs & VJs, bottle by James Webb. Fri 4/5 – Early Friday Art Stars: DJs Joao Ferreira (tbc), Suzie Bell and Ed Young. Featuring polaroid booth Fri 11/5 – Early Friday Sexy Death (rock night): assorted DJs and dress up Fri 18/5 – Early Friday Karaoke with competition, dress up and more Always 4-8pm, always The Waiting Room 273 Long Street, always...

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View from a Watchers Point of View
Apr25

View from a Watchers Point of View

Every now and then we like to scan some international newspapers to check out what they’re saying about either Johannesburg or South Africa.  Often their reporters have an “outsiders POV” – so to speak- and are able to write about situations with less emotional attachment than us local journo’s.  Simply put, they often tell it how it is with little or no homegrown bias, hidden agenda’s nor editorial policy at play – it’s interesting to compare. So today we’re sharing some of their stories with you… under the international buzzwords JOHANNESBURG, 2010 and CAPE TOWN. We search Reuters, the New York Times and the Times UK. JOHANNESBURG Reuters is a good place to start.  Reuters is like the mothership of journalism, their writers and photographers are spread throughout the world, all sending their words or images back to the central planet for distribution to outlying stars.  Their local correspondent Rebecca Harrison recently wrote a feature entitled: “Witness: Pizza and machetes: living with crime in Johannesburg” which shed’s light on the day to day motions of living in Jozi.  You know how the perceptions go… I say Jozi you say crime… Jozi…?… Read more here. “One break-in, one stolen car, one gate ripped from its hinges, an attack for a slice of pizza and two men ambling through the garden with axes: do you stay until you’re killed for a cell phone? I have lived in Johannesburg, South Africa’s economic capital, for about 2-1/2 years and have been a victim of six different crimes.  Thankfully, none was violent. But after the latest break-in at my house in broad daylight, I am starting to wonder what will happen next. Crime in South Africa is haphazard. Some people, even those who have lived here a long time, have never directly experienced any crime at all. But plenty of others I know have suffered badly, including one who was shot in the arm and another who was tied up and locked in the trunk of her car while burglars looted her apartment. These incidents pale in comparison to the murders that fill the newspapers: five small children killed and piled up in a bath of soapy water, or three women beaten, stuffed into washing machines filled with chemicals then strangled with ropes. “ ************************* 2010 The muchos respected New York Times (hope you all read the fantastic NYT supplement free every Sunday in the Sunday Times Lifestyle section) talks about 2010 with the headline “South Africa vs. Itself, in Race to Get Ready for World Cup”  (you may need to subscribe to read this story). The article is written by Joao Silva and was published on the 22 April. Read full story here. “A giant...

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CT International Jazz Festival – AWESOME!
Apr05

CT International Jazz Festival – AWESOME!

Thanks to PANDA who outdid herself and attended nearly every live performance at the 2007 Cape Town International Jazz Festival on behalf of Represent.  Gel you know you rock! See her stunning pics of the festival in our photoblog here.  In a nutshell, she rated Leela James, Lira and HHP as her highlights… we LOVE them all and wish we could have been there!  Read all about it here: Jazz is an almost useless term to describe the variety of music at this gathering of musicians, producers, media and enthusiasts from all over the world. If music was as popular as cricket, I can guarantee, South Africans would be sitting in bars all over South Africa celebrating the success of our local artists, dissecting each composition and the Cape Town International Jazz Festival would be one of the many music festival events populating everyone’s social calendars. We’d be spared Guns & Roses and the rest of the B-list international acts that come out here, in favour of only the best current and most inspirational music. They’d have to hold all events in stadiums and sell season tickets, and broadcast live for days on our national channels and our musicians will get the attention they deserve. African music has inspired jazz, rock and roll, hip hop and R&B across the world. We have every reason to be proud. I can’t think of anything better than sitting on a fold up chair in the autumnal Cape sun watching the artful string pickings and soulful trumpetings of our countrymen and other international stars sipping on a something something and watching the beautiful people stroll serenely by. The festival kicked off with Concord Nkabinde on the big stage, a difficult thing to do but with his beautiful strong voice and big stage presence, he did a great job. Last time I went to the jazz festival I nearly did myself in trying to see everything. Ladies, a tip, don’t wear heels if you can possibly help it, I saw many a footsore woman walking around later in the evening, stilettos in hand. I saw Ester Miller featuring Jeremy Pelt next, a beautiful voice from PE, now living in the UK. Alongside her was a very debonair Mr Pelt. The MC announced that all the beautiful ladies should check out his website and let him know if they’re available – and there were very many beautiful ladies, beautifully dressed. The CTIJF has become as much as a social and fashion event as a celebration of music. The Rosies stage kicked off with Vivid Africa, they’ve found a lot of success in the “world music”...

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