Folklore Festival 2024 FRINGE JHB: FOLKLORE FAMILY DAY AMANDA BLACK, MADALA KUNENE, MALEH, TUBATSI MPHO MOLOI, GCINA MHLOPHE, SIBUSILE XABA& MORE

ABOUT

Folklore Festival returns in 2024 for its third edition with a rich lineup of storytellers as the community comes together again to share in our culture and heritage.

AMANDA BLACK, MADALA KUNENE, MALEH, TUBATSI MPHO MOLOI, SIBUSILE XABA, DR GCINA MHLOPHE, MOAFRIKA WA MOKGATHI, vangile gantsho + PILANI BUBU, BUBBLES THE DJ, DJ BOB + WOMLAMBO MORE TO BE PERFORMING ON 14 SEPTEMBER 2024

The Gauteng #WeTheFolk Folklore Fringe Shows will finale with the annual family Friendly Festival on 14th September, at Constitution Hill, Women’s Jail Precinct. A a rich line up of musicians, authors, spoken word artists, poets, and storytellers have been added to the programme. We are still keeping to our promised of inter-generational dialogue by way of edu-tainment for kids of all ages from 11am – 5pm curated by Knickerbocker Doodle Bag, Logan & Friends with education specialist Dr Jocelyn Logan-Friend, and featuring Gcina Mhlophe

On the main stage we meet:

Amanda Black a powerful voice in women empowerment and African identity. This multi-platinum selling and multiple award-winning singer/songwriter, will bring her afro-soul flair to the days line up. She is an inspired storyteller, consummate performer and Afro - Rockstar!

Dr Madala Kunene is a guitarist, singer, a songwriter, a composer and a musical anthropologist whose native rhythms cross the musical lines between jazz and Zulu folk blues. Affectionately known as ‘Bafo’ - which means brother; his sound has become a staple diet on music stages across South Africa for well over five decades and his dexterity on the six string has earned him the title of “King Of The Zulu Guitar”.

Hailing from the Kingdom of Lesotho we have Maleh, with music textured with tales of migrancy, folklore and moments of deep self-reflection. We look forward to this singer-songwriters considered and afro- spiritual soul.

Then we meet Tubatsi Mpho Moloi, a multi-instrumentalist singer-songwriter influenced by the sounds of blues, jazz, rock and African folk music. His newest work is inspired by artists GuyButtery, Philip Tabane, Bob Dylan and Zim Nqawane. His music asks the audience to be open-minded and exploratory as he brings a collaboration of sound and genre in creating an authentic fusion folk sound.

A beautiful moment is planned to meet Sibusile Xaba’s solo guitar. This Charismatic guitar savant reframes Maskandi, Malombo the desert blues and jazz into his own avant garde humanist manifesto. With a vocal style that is part dream-scaping & part ancestral invocation, Xaba divines as opposed to plainly singing & imbuing mythology

and improvisational intensity.

Then we meet Dr Gcina Mhlophe, an author, storyteller whose works have been translated into many languages, including all official South African languages, kiSwahili, French, German, Spanish, Portuguese,Japanese and even Braille. She has directed her theatre plays in USA, UK and Greenland, her most widely known and studied theatre text being "Have You Seen Zandile?". Her poetry has been reinterpreted into dance and classical music. She has recently edited and self-published the “Our Storytelling Tree: A South African Storytellers Directory” a first of its kind in archiving 38 of the storytellers currently working in South Africa.

This year poetry peeks every one’s interest with a musical flow from the 3 piece band supporting Dr Gcina Mhlophe, vangile gantsho & MoAfrika Wa Mokgathi.

vangile gantsho is healer, poet and co-founder of impepho press. She is the author of two poetry collections: Red cotton (2018) and Undressing in Front of the Window (2015, Named one of Mail & Guardian’s 2018 Top Young200 South Africans. Her poetry has been published in various literary publications, including Years of Fire and Ash – South African Poems of Decolonisation (2021) New Daughters of Africa (2019), andThe Atlanta Review (2018).

MoAfrika wa Mokgathi is a SouthAfrican based multi-faceted artist, who is a writer, poet

performer, Cultural strategist, a serial civil leader, an award-winning radio Presenter-Producer and cultural worker recognised by the Mail & Guardian Top Young 200 South Africans (2020) amongst many in her talent hat. known for her Sepedi pen, her fusion of the language with English and blend of Jazz, soul and kiba rhythms with her deep sassy vocals.

Our DJ’s for the day include: Bubbles The DJ, DJ Bob and Womlambo.

Bubbles The DJ also known as BillyJackson or ‘Bubblingo’ in some circles is a vinyl enthusiast, record collector, music historian, researcher, record producer, cultural activist based in Pretoria who’s been active in the music industry for close to three decades.

DJ Bob is besotted with Jazz,70s Funk-adelica and Southern African Traditional sounds. He loves a good Samba and always throws in a healthy dose of Afrobeat, Acid Jazz and Trip Hoppy 90’sElectronica. This love of a good record and a Funky Jam has served him well on the festival, club and live music circuit around Southern Africa.

Womlambo’s developing sonic offerings have become an extension of her practice as a cultural worker/curator. The amorphous soundscapes are an exploration of the intersection of nature + ritual. Moving between the sacred and secular, she draws from genres such as pan-African,'worldwide' (or rather quasi-traditional, intercultural, and indigenous music from non-western countries), electronica, IDM, alternative, ambient, new age and jazz.

Your host and MC, ‘Indelible Storyteller’ - Pilani Bubu, is a multi-award winning singer-songwriter, poet, TV presenter and also the founder and curator of the Folklore Festival. It is a ritual and an honour for Pilani to perform annually at the festival as her contribution the festivals theme and discourse. Previous years we explored Folklore Chapter 1 and 2 pertaining to intergenerational dialogue and issues of the black family and African spirituality. This year she performs Nay’Indaba reflecting on South Africa’s history past to present as we contemplate

30 years of Freedom with the festivals #WeTheFolk theme.

Ticket Link to 14 September Family Day.

https://qkt.io/FolkloreFestival2024FamilyDay14September

Available on Quicket from R150 | Student Discounts Available

Kids under 10 enter the main gate for Free

DIRECTIONS