Latest news with #DBNGogo
TimesLIVE
a day ago
- Entertainment
- TimesLIVE
Elaine celebrates Women's Month with launch of wellness platform Soft Girl Sundaze
Held in an elegant and tranquil setting, Soft Girl Sundaze welcomed guests including Ayanda Thabethe, Lungile Thabethe, Thabsie, Londie London, Naledi Aphiwe, Naledi Mallela, Sinqobile Tusani and Ndavi Nokerii — all gathered to share in an experience rooted in restoration and empowerment. The day kicked off with a rejuvenating pilates session led by Shoneze Jayd Ramsammy, designed to realign mind, body and spirit. Guests later enjoyed an uplifting set by DBN Gogo, who closed out the event with a feel-good celebration of joy and feminine freedom. Created in collaboration with People of Change Creative Agency (POC) and Pretty Wild, the launch was supported by lifestyle partners such as Lainey's Flowers, Sol de Janeiro, Dreambodi, Lelive, Elaine Music, So Matcha, and Tempo Luxury. Speaking on her inspiration behind the project, Elaine said: 'Soft Girl Sundaze is about creating a sanctuary where women can slow down, connect, and embrace softness as a strength. It's a celebration of rest, beauty and community — all without compromising on style.' With its debut event a resounding success, Soft Girl Sundaze is set to return as a recurring series, offering more women the opportunity to experience its blend of movement, mindfulness, beauty and lifestyle. For Elaine, wellness isn't just a practice — it's a way of life.
TimesLIVE
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- TimesLIVE
‘Betway Presents Scorpion Kings with Friends' unveils star-studded pre-show lineup
As anticipation builds for one of the year's most epic musical events, Betway Presents Scorpion Kings Live with Friends has turned up the heat with the announcement of a massive pre-show experience. In partnership with Metro FM and Converse, the show's organisers are promising fans a full-day celebration of South African music and culture at Loftus Stadium starting before the main event kicks off. From 2pm a pre-show stage will set the tempo for the night with a mix of some of Mzansi's hottest musical talent including DBN Gogo, Blxckie, 25K, Venom, Dlala Thukzin, Dinho, Christos, Vinny Da Vinci, Ba Bethe Gashoazen and Banques. 'This is not only an amapiano show, it's a full-day experience,' said Scorpion Kings duo DJ Maphorisa and Kabza De Small. 'We're inviting fans to come early, soak in the vibesand discover some of the freshest talents the country has to offer. The pre-show stage is all about celebrating music and making the day at Loftus unforgettable.'
News24
25-06-2025
- Business
- News24
Sean Barber's brand Rockets creates employment through his lifestyle empire
The Rockets founder dreamt of being a sports star as a child, but when life happened, he dusted himself off, tried again and now he runs one of SA's biggest lifestyle brands. From restaurants to barbershops and record labels, he has been instrumental in Kelvin Momo's and DBN Gogo's soaring music careers. The multiple award-winning Barber has hosted masterclasses for leading financial institutions. A rugby injury when he was 14 crushed Sean Barber's dreams of a successful sporting career, steering his life towards a different path from what he had envisioned. Reflecting on this redirection, the chartered accountant-turned-hospitality and entertainment wizard told City Press that the experience had opened his eyes to what the adults meant when they said you don't always get what you want in life. Heeding the call to open one door when another closed, the Rockets founder's interest in hospitality was sparked by the years he spent in Wimbledon Village in London in the UK. The area is known for its coffee shops, cafés and restaurants that serve its vibrant community, in addition to being famous for the iconic Wimbledon Tennis Championships, of course. Barber's Rockets empire is not just a restaurant chain but a lifestyle brand including clubs, rooftops, salons and the Dance Africa Record label. Some of the features inside the eateries even include soundproofed clubs and cinemas. In the spirit of Youth Month, Barber explained the importance of teaching young people that a dream derailed was not the end of the world. He said that the future was not determined by one dream and reminded the youth that they were allowed to change their dreams. 'It's good to have different dreams and to pursue them. But the most important thing behind any dream is to realise that, without passion, no dream makes any sense. So, the lesson is, do what you love, do what you're passionate about and then chase it down with everything you have,' he added. He walked City Press through how Rockets' success kicked off with corporate lunches before introducing the salons. This was done as part of his vision to steer people away from seeing Rockets as just a food joint but an all-encompassing lifestyle brand. He remembered a client telling him how the establishment had captured him. Supplied 'I had lunch at Rockets Express. After work, I went for a haircut at Rockets Man and then I went for dinner at Rockets Bryanston,' the client had said. Barber described his establishment as enhancing and incorporating elements of luxury and ease into what one would consider a normal day 'The move into music and to Dance Africa has been just an extension of that. It's a lifestyle brand and a big part of that is entertainment. So, everything just made sense around it and that's why we pushed,' he explained. Among the young artists whose careers Rockets has helped accelerate are Kelvin Momo and DBN Gogo. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Rockets (@ 'I was introduced to both when no one knew who they were. In 2020, Kevin was still a producer, just starting to DJ . ..we gave him a platform to be heard across all the venues and he was an incredible talent. DBN Gogo [Mandisa Radebe] as well, rather than the beginning, you know, no one would know who she was when she was getting on the decks,' he recalled. He described Rockets Media as a label to collect that content to sell to certain media houses, which sparked the idea to incorporate a recording studio as a platform to discover young talent and showcase it. 'We go right to the beginning of music creation ... creating and recording songs and then adding voiceovers into them,' he beamed. Rockets employs more than 400 young people and books an incredible 300 DJs per month. There are thousands of people whose lives we've hopefully positively impacted, whether it's been employment with us and developing their skill set in whatever job they have and enhancing them, enabling them to put Rockets on their CVs. Sean Barber Barber's entrepreneurial journey has resulted in multiple awards and being a guest speaker at the GQ and Standard Bank SA Business Masterclass. He said he wanted to continue inspiring future entrepreneurs by sharing the experiences and challenges that have turned his passion into an empire.
News24
11-06-2025
- Automotive
- News24
Halala! Amapiano young star Zee Nxumalo buys a luxury vehicle
Zee Nxumalo has achieved remarkable success in the music industry. She has been rapidly growing her career, releasing hit singles with her powerful vocals and captivating performances, ultimately making her fans favourite artist all over the globe. And it's clear that her rise to popularity, hard work and talent have started to pay off in the form of well-deserved achievements. Read more | Scotts Maphuma buys himself a luxurious car and house Zee made her debut in the music scene with her album 'KwaNxumalo' in 2022. The following year she collaborated with Shakes & Les and DBN Gogo on the song Funk 55, which featured Chley and Ceeka RSA. On the Local Streaming Chart Top 10, it made its debut at number 2. On March 29, 2024, her single 'Thula Mabota,' starring Shakes & Les and Pabi Cooper and 031choppa, was released and it received a platinum certification. Zee has since been releasing many hit songs with well-established artists and DJ like Dlala Thukzin, which have solidified her status in the South African music industry. Recently, she celebrated a major milestone by purchasing her brand-new luxury vehicle, a sleek navy-blue Mercedes-Benz V300d (V class). Zee took the news to Instagram to celebrate with her fans and followers and captioned it 'Please be patient on the road, driver is still a learner.' Many flooded her comments section with congratulatory messages including industry artists alike, wishing her safe journeys. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Zee Nxumalo (@zeenxumalo_)
France 24
02-06-2025
- Entertainment
- France 24
South Africa's amapiano has the world dancing
With energy and purpose, they rehearsed a sequence in the style of the house music subgenre born on the streets of the townships around 15 years ago and now showcased by stars like Beyonce and Tyla. Soweto's Finest Dance Studio draws dancers of all kinds -- from ballerinas to party-goers -- to learn the amapiano moves sweeping the world through TikTok tutorials and challenges. Amapiano "is not about the words but you feel it inside of you," said Venus Chidinma, 25, a professional dancer from New York who studied at the studio for several weeks. "It doesn't matter where you come from, what race, what colour -- you feel it and you have to just move. It's just from inside you," the Harvard graduate told AFP. Central to the sound is the log drum, a distinctive bass that sets it apart from other forms of dance music. It blends soulful jazz and deep house with 1990s kwaito to create a local genre with no strict rules. The dance style mixes up others, from the coordinated quick steps of South African panstula to the "baleka" move that closely resembles Michael Jackson's iconic moonwalk. "Its authenticity to South Africa makes it stand out," said Thando Nhlapho, the 21-year-old professional dancer and choreographer at the landmark Soweto studio. Nhlapho, still glistening from her latest class, creates and posts dance videos on social media to "get my name out there". "I don't only dance to amapiano but I choose to use amapiano as a marketing strategy because it is now the trending thing, the hot thing globally," she told AFP. Global language "Amapiano is so powerful, it's taken over Africa," said Emmanuel Mwenya, 25, a choreographer from Lusaka. "In Zambia, we dance and sing along to the music even though we do not understand the lyrics," said Mwenya, who spent a week in South Africa to learn the style. "We do amapiano but it's never original. So I thought I'd take the time to come here to learn something original," he said at the studio. Amapiano is its own language, said the professional dancer who also uses social media to promote his work. "Whether you speak Zulu, Bemba, Nyanja, English... it all connects, no matter where you're from." This spirit of inclusiveness comes to life on social media, where people of all ages, backgrounds and cultures unite in dance challenges, like the one for "Tshwala Bami" on TikTok that was taken up by US performer Jason Derulo. "My mom is 46 years old today and even at her age, I still teach her some TikTok dance challenges," said 21-year-old South African Snethemba Mathe, her face lit up. Xiaoying Zhan, 30, brought three friends visiting from China with her to a class. Zhan, who is from China but now lives in South Africa, said she caught on to the amapiano beat during the Covid-19 lockdown around five years ago. "I was enjoying the music and that is why I started dancing to amapiano," she said. "The music has a lot of upbeat tempo," she said, listing South Africa's DBN Gogo and Uncle Waffles, originally from neighbouring Eswatini, as among her favourite artists, but only after Tyla. According to Spotify, amapiano featured in more than 855 million streams recorded in 2024 alone, making the genre a powerful promotion tool for career dancers. "Amapiano is something that's so easy to vibe to," said Chidinma, the dancer from New York who posts videos of various styles on her Instagram account. "Whenever people come up with a dance, it's going to go viral," she said.
