
Music beats out all other pastimes
JOHANNESBURG - We all know South Africa is a singing, dancing nation.
And now the 2025 Global Music Report has confirmed that music strikes a chord.
A BrandMapp survey also shows 58 percent of respondents said music is their top pastime.
It comes ahead of movies, cooking, reading, dining out and even travel.
The survey also shows that people enjoy live music more than they do live sports.

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Associated Press
22 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Trump moves to merge wildland firefighting into single force, despite ex-officials warning of chaos
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Identity
23 minutes ago
- Identity
Workplace Competition: Friendly Fire or Just Fire?
We don't always talk about it, but competition shows up at work more than we like to admit. Not the dramatic, throw-someone-under-the-bus kind, the quiet kind. The kind that slips into our meetings, our messages, our morning catch-ups. At first, we tell ourselves it's a good thing. A little pressure to keep us sharp. We want to do well, stand out, maybe even impress. And there's nothing wrong with that. But slowly, without meaning to, we start comparing. We notice who's getting praised. Who's being looped into more emails. Who's getting tagged in the team wins, who isn't. We start thinking less about doing our best, and more about doing better than someone else. We tone down our excitement when someone else shines. We feel a little uneasy clapping too hard in the meeting. We don't talk about it out loud but we feel it and if we're being honest, it doesn't always feel like motivation. Sometimes, it just feels like quiet pressure with a smile. Here's the thing: competition isn't the enemy. When it's healthy, it's one of the best things in any work environment. It keeps us on our toes. It motivates us to do better, think sharper, and move quicker. It pushes ideas forward. And when the energy's right, it can even be fun. But somewhere along the way, the 'fun' disappears, and it starts to feel more like Hunger Games with PowerPoint presentations. The problem isn't ambition. The problem is what happens when ambition turns into quiet sabotage. When instead of celebrating wins, we start side-eying each other's success like it's taking something away from us. That's when it stops being motivating and starts being exhausting. And you know what's even worse? Some workplaces e ncourage this. They pit employees against each other thinking it'll spark innovation, when all it sparks is drama, ego wars, and a workplace vibe that feels more like a reality show reunion episode than a functional team, and let's be real: no one thrives in chaos. At least not sustainably. Here's an idea that isn't groundbreaking but somehow still needs to be said: we can compete without hating each other. We can challenge one another without rooting for someone else to fail. We can want to be the best and still be happy when someone else shines. Wild, I know. Because at the end of the day, no one wins when the office becomes a battlefield. Collaboration and competition aren't opposites, they're better when they live in the same space. It's not about who's loudest, fastest, or smartest in the room. It's about what we build when we stop tearing each other down. So the next time things get tense and the competitive edge kicks in, maybe ask yourself: Is this friendly fire? Or are we just setting everything on fire and calling it ambition? Share your thoughts with us!


Independent Singapore
23 minutes ago
- Independent Singapore
'You've put on weight' — Woman asks if it's normal in Singapore to openly comment on someone's weight
SINGAPORE: Irritated at the freedom with which two people recently commented on her weight, a woman took to Reddit to ask if this is normal in Singapore. In a Wednesday (June 11) post on r/askSingapore, u/slcreation101 wrote that prior to getting pregnant, she weighed 48kg. She now weighs 52kg, 16 months after giving birth. The heaviest she got during her pregnancy was 60kg, which means she has already lost a fair amount of weight, and she added that she is still breastfeeding. Nevertheless, her Filipino helper and the admin staff at her baby's infant care have openly told her she's put on weight. When she called the helper out, the helper explained that 'in Filipino culture, commenting on someone's weight is often seen as a neutral or even positive observation, like saying someone is eating well.' And when the post author asked the helper if she wanted her to lose weight, the helper finally understood and stopped making these types of comments. See also Singaporeans Share Their Most Embarrassing Moments At Work 'I s this kind of comment socially acceptable in Singapore? Is it seen as normal or harmless in some cultures or communities here? I'd love to understand different perspectives on this, especially around cultural norms and personal boundaries,' the post author added. Some commenters on her post confirmed what her Filipino helper had told her, that in their culture, people do comment on weight openly, with some even complimenting people when they've gained weight. Others agreed that it may be part of some Asian cultures in general, especially with older generations. 'In the Anglo countries, people generally don't comment about each other's weight in front of their face. My parents grew up in a smaller Asian town where boundaries don't mean much. It might depend on how blunt a culture generally is. Not sure how it is in Germany, for example, but Japan would probably be more on the more polite side,' one wrote. 'Unfortunately, it's part of our culture, though they mean no harm. Everyone wants to talk to me about my weight, even if it's my body and none of their business. Just one ear goes in, one ear goes out la,' chimed in another. Some reassured the post author that at her height of 1.6m, 52 kg is 'far from obese.' Another endeavoured to explain that 'Asian folks love to comment on weight because the love language for a majority of seniors brought up in struggle times is to feed their family. If they see you've lost weight, they worry you're not eating enough and/or they're afraid they're not doing a good enough job. If you're fat, they'll worry about your health. Either way, they'll still force you to finish all the dishes on the table. Or else.' They added, however, that focusing on weight is not just annoying but downright rude. Others echoed this sentiment, adding that too much of a focus on body size can do real damage to people, especially to women, in the sense of leading to eating disorders. /TISG See also Can the Lions really 'roar' in Asean Suzuki Cup? Read also: Woman who gained 20kg due to working stress in Singapore asks if she should quit her job 'to lose weight'