On: PRO
As the proceeds of the Dankie San tribute concert go towards an education fund for PRO’s daughter, the hip hop family tells Helen Herimbi what PRO taught them On a balmy Jozi night, I am perched on the couch. I make the Netflix chill and put on a movie I would’ve never willingly watched: August […]
On: Unathi
Ahead of her national tour, Unathi takes Helen Herimbi through an exercise of how music helped her become courageous, correct and capable. “I tell people all the time,” Unathi says after we’ve run 1.5km and are back at the first step of the steep Westcliff Stairs. “The key to the stairs is: don’t look up. […]
On: Nasty C
Following the release of Strings and Bling, Nasty C talks to Helen Herimbi about ceilings, scriptures and getting on stage.
On: Ben Sharpa
Friends and family of the culture-defining Ben Sharpa reminisce about the late, great rapper, writes Helen Herimbi “No matter what anybody tells you, words and ideas can change the world.” That phrase, from the film, Dead Poets Society, was immortalised by the late, great emcee, Ben Sharpa. As a rapper, producer and thought leader, his […]
On: Sho Madjozi
Ahead of her first appearance at Oppikoppi, Sho Madjozi speaks to Helen Herimbi about creativity, culture and competition A few weeks after we’ve had the following interview, I’m talking to Sho Madjozi behind the stage at the Global Citizen press conference, where Beyonce has been announced as the headliner for the concert. A girl who […]
On: DJ Vetkuk vs Mahoota
DJ Vetkuk vs Mahoota speak to Helen Herimbi about what it took to get to this version of their newest album, Local Everywhere Mahoota’s cellphone rests atop a physical copy of Spikiri’s new album, King Don Father. Both Mahoota and Spikiri are part of revered kwaito group Trompies, and I point at the CD and […]
On: Black Coffee
What goes on in the mind of a globetrotting DJ like Black Coffee? Helen Herimbi flew to Ibiza to find out What appears to be a white baby grand piano sits untouched in the corner of the room. The music is really outside. DJ Da Capo is on the decks and about 30 South Africans […]
On: Muzi
Following the release of his new album, Muzi speaks to Helen Herimbi about being alternative and Africans in space His rolled-up spottie. That’s about the only thing that’s predictable about the producer, songwriter, singer who simply goes by the name of Muzi. Sometimes it’s black. Other times it’s a military green. But it is always […]
On: Mx Blouse
Experimental artist Mx Blouse speaks to Helen Herimbi about bending genres at will “I remember that I didn’t like playing with the kids outside,” Mx Blouse says before they burst into laughter. They’re reminiscing about being a bougie kid growing up between Richard’s Bay and Melmoth in Kwa-Zulu Natal. “I remember playing tyres with the […]
On: AKA
After hearing his new album Helen Herimbi quizzes AKA about love, liquor and lyrics A day after AKA returns home from Cannes, France, he’s hooked up to an IV at Reviv wellness centre in Johannesburg. He’s there for some rejuvenation after travelling and before he releases his third solo album, Touch My Blood, this Friday. […]