South African filmmaker Richard Stanley has had a remarkable career, full of glorious highs and spectacular disaster. Leaving apartheid South Africa to avoid being drafted, he became a highly sought-after music video director in the UK, bringing his eye for the bizarre to the smoke machine visions of goth and post-punk bands. At a young…
The rapper Tekashi 6ix9ine had one of the most sordid rise and falls in the history of popular music. His initial fame was less rooted in his repetitive, but catchy trap bangers, than it was in his trolling image. 6ix9ine was known for his garish face tattoos, rainbow coloured hair and his constant feuds with…
Ousmane Sembéne, who is concerned the ‘founding father’ of Third Cinema in Africa once said, “some say we are made of flesh and blood, I believe we are made of stories”. In our rapidly changing global ecologies of new media and digitisation, these stories that make up the blood, breath, past and future of our…
The beginning of social media and the influencer economy resulted in the democratisation of influence. The power that was once in the hands of kings, queens, and nobles swiftly made its way to the hands of A-list celebrities, then finally to the hands of the masses; the ‘ordinary’ people. Whilst social hierarchies are constantly being…
Budweiser, globally known as the “King of Beers” has launched the biggest online DJ search we’ve seen to date. The Kings of the Decks, pits DJs in a battle to determine who has the skills to play on the Ultra South Africa stage in February 2020. Judged by Sabelo Mtshal; is widely known to most…
Over the past few years, queerness and queering have transformed, morphed and taken on all sorts of contortions in the public imagination. Although most people claim to be more tolerant and can perform that tolerance (thank you hashtag woke), many out there still harbour both conscious and unconscious prejudices towards the queer community. After all,…
The modern architecture of a glass storefront offers a glimpse into a space burgeoning with knowledge on well curated shelves and caffeinated conversation. The Commune is a radical community-centered, collectively-run bookshop. Situated on Reserve Street, the project is local to Braamfontein in the hopes of engaging discourse in South Africa and on the continent. Its…
Joburg Film Festival was established as an independent platform with a focus on African narratives. Running from 19 – 24 November 2019; the festival acts as a platform to showcase and praise excellence in film both locally and internationally. Brought to the public in collaboration with MultiChoice, handpicked films selected from more than 16 countries…
When Madonna came out with her hit “Vogue” you knew it was over. She had taken a very specifically queer, transgendered, Latino and African-American phenomenon and totally erased that context with her lyrics, “It makes no difference if you’re black or white, if you’re a boy or a girl.” Madonna was taking in tons of…
On 31 October, I was on my way to Soweto as I See A Different You’s Vuyo Mpantsha and Fhatuwani Mukheli together with Scottish Leader, had invited the press to a celebration. An exhilarating activation unfolded as these beacons of the industry unveiled one of their latest projects in collaboration with Scottish Leader. The Soweto…
Prepare yourself for the exceptional at this year’s Miller Music Drop on the 30th of November 2019 spearheaded by Miller. Miller Music Drop is an exclusive, invite only music experience brought to the community in association with Channel O. A date that brings together an exhilarating line up of performers, the line-up for this gathering includes Grammy nominated…
The best part about moving to a new city is right before you actually move. Your new life hasn’t yet begun, and so, like all things that have done nothing, it’s perfect. Caught in a loop of productivity tracking and bullet journaling and incessant to-do lists that are glorified as unrequited love letters to ambition,…
