Popular
Image from Flickr Creative Commons

End of an Era as Last South African Music Shop Closes

End of an Era as Last South African Music Shops Set to Close

South Africa's Clicks Group has announced the imminent closure of its Musica stores—the last music stores in South Africa after 29 years.

South Africans are bidding farewell to Musica, yet another cultural giant which will be closing shop soon. Musica stores, which are owned by the South African Clicks Group, have been the leading music retailer in the sales of physical CDs and DVDs for close to three decades. Musica admittedly provided a home for many South Africans to leisurely browse through their favourite music in very much the same way book lovers do in book stores. However, as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and having been outcompeted by the digital music world, all Musica stores across the country will be closing permanently.


READ: South Africans Say Goodbye to Beloved 'Cosmo SA' Magazine

In a statement issued by the Clicks Group, the company writes:

"Musica has been operating in a declining market for several years owing to the structural shift globally to the digital consumption of music, movies and games from the traditional physical format.The inevitable demise of the brand has been accelerated by the Covid-19 pandemic which resulted in the rapid decline in foot traffic in destination malls where Musica stores are typically located."

The closure of Musica is not surprising given the considerable impact that the digital era has had on traditional industries such as print media, video rentals and even photographs or images. The demise of previously lucrative enterprises such as Cosmopolitan SA, Blockbuster, Kodak and several others has been testament to this shift towards the digital with failure to adequately adapt proving detrimental.

Naturally, there are widespread concerns of further unemployment in South Africa given the closure of Musica during a pandemic. However, the Clicks Group has reportedly stated that employees will be absorbed into the group's expanding health and beauty stores "where this is operationally feasible."

The closure of all Musica stores is reportedly set to take full effect by May 31st of this year.

Here's what some South Africans on social media have had to say about the news:

Popular
Photo Credit: Amazon

Watch the Trailer for 'Gangs of Lagos,' Amazon's First African Movie

Amazon's Gangs of Lagos will premiere on April 7th.

Nollywood is coming to Prime Video.

On Monday, the conglomerate announced that it would be releasing Gangs of Lagos, its first original African movie, on April 7th. The project, which is directed by renowned filmmaker Jáde Osiberu, features Nigerian stars like Tobi Bakare, Adesua Etomi-Wellington, Chike Osebuka, Chioma Chukwuka, and Iyabo Ojo.

The movie will follow the lives of a group of friends as they navigate the bustling streets of Lagos.

In a press release, Wangi Mba-Uzoukwu, head of Nigerian Originals at Prime Video, described the movie as a story that highlights the importance of friendship and family.

"Gangs of Lagos is a unique story about family and friendship, against the action-packed backdrop and striking set pieces of the streets of Lagos,” Mba-Uzoukwu said. “As the first Nigerian Original to launch on Prime Video, Gangs of Lagos sets the tone and standard, with the authentically Nigerian storyline in a genre that is so popular around the globe, making it a movie for our audiences at home and abroad.”

Gangs of Lagos - Official Teaser | Prime Video Naijawww.youtube.com

Located on the country's southwest coast, Lagos is the largest city in Nigeria. Over the years, the vibrant city has become known for its bustling economy, eclectic culture, and rich history. The crime drama promises to showcase the nitty gritty rumble and tumble of Lagos, as well as the authentic elements that make it one of the most renowned cities in the world.

Ned Mitchell, head of African and Middle East Originals, Prime Video said that with the roll out, Prime Video was hoping to connect with original voices.

“At Prime Video, we are looking to work with original voices to create spectacular stories and events that audiences can connect with wherever they may be,”

Mitchell said. "Gangs of Lagos launching will truly be a global cultural moment that marks the beginning of a new era in storytelling, where audiences everywhere can see the full power of Nigerian and African voices and the depths of our continued commitment to the local TV and film industry.”
Music
Photo by Oupa Bopape/Gallo Images via Getty Images.

Costa Titch Was Just Getting Started

Following his tragic passing, we take a look back at the polarising South African rapper’s career.

AKA expressed that his and Costa Titchs joint album, You’re Welcome, helped take him out of a dark place after losing his fiancé in 2020. “He and I started just hanging out, and he brought me out of my shell, saying, ‘Come out, come make music again, come start performing again,’” AKA told HYPE Magazine two weeks before being shot and killed in Durban last month.

Costa Titch, who died a month later while performing on stage at Ultra Festival in Joburg, had met AKA through Riky Rick, who also passed away in 2022. AKA and Riky appeared on the remix to Costa Titch’s 2019 breakout hit “Nkalakatha”—and AKA they hit it off from then.

Breaking Through to the Mainstream

The “Nkalakatha” remix was Costa Titch’s knighting event. Following years of bubbling under, the New Wave (South Africa’s SoundCloud rap scene) pioneer had not just caught the attention of two of the biggest rappers in the country, but he was on a song with them.

Costa Titch had worked his way up from dancing with his homeboy Benny Chill while growing up in Nelspruit in the Mpumalanga province. Costa and his crew had a stint as Cassper Nyovests’ official dancers in the mid-2010s. But Costa Titch found himself being a recording artist after making music with Tumi Tladi (another South African rapper who passed on last year). Their thinking was that, in order for their dance videos to be played on TV, they needed to be accompanied by original music. When people fell in love with their music, the two rappers ran with it and Costa Titch started building his name in South Africa’s SoundCloud rap scene.

By the time of his death, Costa Titch had grown into an A-list South African artist. His breakout hit “Big Flexa” had gone viral through a TikTok challenge and a music video that had surpassed 40 million views. His lyrical approach to amapiano was reminiscent of Focalistic’s style. “‘Ke Star’ like Foca,” Costa rapped on the song which featured his early collaborator Alfa Kat alongside Sdida, Man T, C’buda and the duo Banaba Des.

Polarising Nature

While millions of fans danced to Costa’s viral hits, the critics were crying foul play at a white kid appropriating black culture. “I had a lot black friends and I connected with black people more,” Costa Titch explained in an interview with SlikourOnLife. “I’ve just been around African culture.” Costa Titch’s best friend growing up was the rapper Benny Chill with whom he remained close until he passed on. “I’m learning Zulu through making music,” Costa said at the time.

The game opened its arms to the young rapper. His debut album Made In Africa, which dropped in 2020, featured the likes of DJ Maphorisa, Sjava, Riky Rick, AKA, Boity, Boskasie, YoungstaCPT and a few other South African music stars.

Costa Titch’s music was catchy and allowed him and his dancers to give a lively show on stage. He also maintained the dance element in his music which was helpful in an era when fans connect with songs they can dance to on camera, becoming TikTok sensations in the process.

Explaining the joint album, AKA said the two of them had set out to make a “non musical project.” “We are living in the amapiano era. So we said how can we make amapiano without making amapiano,” he said. “We wanted to make TikTok songs… We didn’t wanna make long songs.”

Saving AKA’s Life

You’re Welcome hardly made a dent. The album wasn’t well-received by fans and its lead single “Super Soft” didn’t do much either. It also felt too soon for AKA to be making music after the controversial passing of Nellie.

To AKA, though, You’re Welcome meant a lot. He was introduced to Costa’s younger fanbase as the duo performed in spaces AKA wouldn’t normally give the time of the day. Costa Titch saved AKA’s life, but both rappers, unbeknown to anyone at the time, didn’t have much time left.

AKA passed on two weeks before the release of Mass Country, his comeback album which was led by the monster single “Lemons (Lemonade)” which featured Nasty C, a rapper AKA has invited to rap on stage in Durban many moons before Nasty became a superstar himself.

Costa Titch was only getting started. His career had just taken off. At this year’s Cotton Fest in February, Costa brought out Akon as a surprise guest. The Konvict Kulture head honcho announced a partnership between his company and the South African rapper. “I wanna inaugurate him into the Konvict Kulture family,” he said. A remix of “Big Flexa” featuring Akon followed a week after. Costa Titch was about to make the world his oyster. But the universe had other plans. He collapsed while performing at Ultra and was pronounced dead almost instantly.

Costa Titch was a polarising artist as, while some felt he was performing musical black face, those on his side felt he was just being a citizen of a post-racial South Africa where racial and cultural lines are blurred the way Mandela envisioned.

Others hailed Costa Titch as an icon, understandably so. “You were that white kid who stood out like a sore thumb because of how incredibly skilled, technical, intentional, creative, professional, disciplined, hardworking and wildly amazing you were as a multitalented dancer and choreographer,” wrote Bontle Modiselle, who also spent a long time in the thriving South African hip-hop dance scene of the late 2000s and early 2010s.

Costa Titch joins a plethora of popular South African musicians who have passed on in what seems like a purge of sorts. In the last two years South Africa has lost talents such as Riky Rick, AKA, Tumi Tladi, Mpura, Killer Kau, DJ Dimplez, DJ Citi Lyts, Mampintsha and DJ Sumbody, a majority of who were on top of their game and had exciting futures ahead of them in the game.

Photo by Alex Wong via Getty

‘Hotel Rwanda’ Hero Paul Rusesabagina to Be Released From Prison

Paul Rusesabagina, who became renowned for his heroic portrayal in ‘Hotel Rwanda’, has received a presidential-ordered prison commute and will be released.

Paul Rusesabagina, the former hotel manager who saved over 1,200 Rwandans during the 1994 genocide and who was the inspiration behind the 2004 Hollywood film Hotel Rwanda, will be released from prison on Saturday (March 25th.) Following a request for clemency, Rwanda’s government commuted the prison sentence of Paul Rusesabagina, who is now 68.

In 2020, the Rwandan government arrested Rusesabagina in Dubai and later transferred to Rwanda, where he faced charges of terrorism, related to his alleged involvement in a rebel group. Following the charges, the Rwandan court sentenced him to 25 years in prison. His sentencing triggered controversy, with some supporters alleging that he had been unfairly targeted. In 2022, Rusesabagina’s family sued the government of Rwanda for $400 million, stating that they had "abducted" and illegally imprisoned him. Following Rusesabagina’s conviction, several people speculated that he had been imprisoned because he had criticized Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame’s politics.

During Rwanda’s genocide, Rusesabagina worked as a hotel manager at the Hôtel des Mille Collines in Kigali, the capital of Rwanda. Despite the violence and chaos that surrounded him, Rusesabagina used his influence and resources to protect and shelter over 1,200 Tutsi and moderate Hutu refugees from the Hutu extremists who were carrying out the genocide. Hotel Rwanda, was based on Rusesabagina’s experiences experiences during the genocide, and the film's release catapulted him into fame. In the movie, Rusesabagina was portrayed by Hollywood actor Don Cheadle.

According to Yolande Makolo, Kagame Chief of Staff, and spokesperson on the issue, the sentences of 19 others, who were convicted alongside Rusesabagina will also be released.

"Under Rwandan law, commutation of sentence does not extinguish the underlying conviction," Makolo told Reuters. “Rwanda notes the constructive role of the US government in creating conditions for dialogue on this issue, as well as the facilitation provided by the State of Qatar."

Rwanda’s ministry of justice, as reported as Reuters also stated that the commutation could be revoked if any of the released prisoners repeated the offenses.

"If any individual benefiting from early release repeats offences of a similar nature, the commutation can be revoked and the remainder of the prison sentence will be served," Rwanda's justice ministry said.
Music
Photo by Matt Crossick

Davido Is Bringing ‘Timeless’ to These Cities

The Nigerian superstar has announced ‘A Timeless Night with Davido’ in Lagos, London and New York.

Davido has shared on social media that he will be bringing his Timelessalbum to New York, London, and Lagos, dubbing the mini-tour “A Timeless Night With Davido.”

In the post, the singer wrote:The support for Timeless over the last few days has been incredible! Thank you for the love. I'm so excited to bring this album to life and share it with you in person. London, New York City, Lagos join me for ‘A Timeless Night,' a special live event, where we'll make memories that will last forever!”

The DMW boss shared dates for the events; noting that in the first week of April, he will take the stage in New York and London, at Irving Plaza and Koko London, respectively, before returning to Lagos to perform at Tafawa Balewa Stadium in Lagos later that month.

In a viral social media post on Tuesday, the Nigerian singer announced that he will be releasing his latest studio album Timeless on March 31. The announcement spurred a lot of excitement and expectation from fans, who had been curious about the singer’s well-being after the extended hiatus that followed the tragic loss of his son, three year old Ifeanyi Adeleke.

Throughout Davido's 11-year career, he has become a staple in Afrobeats and has contributed significantly to pushing the sound, helping it resonate with fans globally. The singer has released several studio albums throughout his career, including Omo Baba Olowo (2012), A Good Time (2019), and A Better Time (2020).

Timeless will be his fourth studio album.

get okayafrica in your inbox

news.

The Songs You Need to Hear This Week

Featuring new African music from Burna Boy, Amaarae, Major League Djz, Kwesi Arthur, Victony and more.

In her Debut Film, Angela Wamai Confronts Trauma and Seeks Healing

The Kenyan filmmaker chose to explore the heavy subject of sexual abuse for her first feature but that hasn’t stopped audiences from engaging with the film’s pressing themes.

Ghanaian Rapper Kwesi Arthur Shares Visuals For ‘Pain Interlude’

Watch Kwesi Arthur’s inspiring new video for his latest single “Pain interlude.”

Places in Lagos to Have Fun this Weekend

Discover weekend events in Lagos, from beach parties, film screenings, and art exhibitions to nightlife.

popular.

Joshua Baraka Is Ugandan Music’s Next Big Thing

With the hit song "Nana," Joshua Baraka has solidified his position as a rising star in the East African music scene.