Four months and almost one million votes later, Hansa Pilsener announced the six fresh South African music acts to perform on stage with Usher at the Hansa Festival of Legends.
The winners of the nation-wide talent search are Urban artists Mo and the Dark Knights from Gauteng, Busi M from the Western Cape, Shoelace from Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape, Mapak’shop from the Northern Province, Mo Klaassik from the Free State and Abdus from KwaZulu-Natal. They will all take to the stage at Orlando Stadium in Soweto on March 10, as part of the Hansa Festival of Legends, serving as a precursor to multiple Grammy Award winner Usher Raymond.
Shoelace is a 5 piece consisting of; Ndumiso Ntantiso, Zusakhe Gysman, Mvuzo Mnyaka, Xola Kulati and Sinoxolo Mbuthuma and they boast of a pretty impressive CV having played alongside artists such as; New Holland, Captain stu, Don’t Panic, Jamali, Danny K, Uju, Poetic Soul, Xolani Fanu and Anne Rosenquist Fee. And now they will be able to say that they played on the same bill as Usher – heady stuff guys, well done.
Shoelace were Top Ten finalists in the 2011 DO YOU ROCK competition on Kingfisher FM as well as winning a Standard Bank National Arts Festival Encore Ovation award in 2011.
Enkosi enkosi enkosi thank you thank you thank you for the votes guys…Thank you again and again for voting for us
24 February 2012 1:11 pm via FacebookReplyRetweetFavorite
“The six urban artists were selected out of 1 500 entries from around the country by Hansa’s team of Talent Search Ambassadors, who have been combing the country since November to identify the hottest local talent,” says Hansa Pilsener’s General Manager, Mosidi Seretlo. These were whittled down to twelve finalists through a rigorous selection process, from which members of the public could vote on the final six acts.
The crowd can expect to hear Mo and the Dark Knights’ fusion of funk, kwaito, hip hop, rock and soul, songbird Busi M’s jazz and dance beats, Shoelace’s “pop rock with African elements, blues and soul”, Mapak’shop ‘s Motswako hip hop rap, Mo Klassik’s hip hop and afro pop with an RB influence and Zulu rapper Abdus’ lyrical rhymes.
“The aim of the competition was to provide a platform for existing musicians to promote their art and get exposure on a national level, as well as mentoring from credible music industry business people,” Seretlo says. Judges included Thabiso Khati – who has worked with artists ranging from Lucky Dube to L-Tido – local rap group Teargas and music mogul Zakes Bantwini.
Besides the main act of RB superstar Usher, the Hansa Festival of Legends will feature performances from established musicians Gang of Instrumentals, Liquideep, Teargas and Zakes Bantwini with Oskido, Vigilante, Capital and DJ Tira on the decks.
Gates open at noon and the first act takes the Orlando Stadium stage in Johannesburg on Saturday 10 March 2012 at 12:00 noon. No under 18s allowed.
