Ladies enjoying the music
Kritsi and T.O.P.
Blaq Pearl doing her thang on stage
Blaq Pearl's saxophonist blowing the hell out of that thang
Peeps chilling and enjoying the vibes
Uno, big-pimpin as always
The Blaq Pearl band and a fan
Ze crowd
Blaq Pearl in her element
Lolo from Archetypes asking us how he looks
Nick Kaoma
On a typically chilly evening in Cape Town, hardcore music fans made their regular pilgrimage from their comfortable abodes to yet another smoky hangout spot where they would be fed a strict diet of funked-up unadulterated live music, die Kaapse style.
The venue, this time around, was an eccentric, old-boys spot aptly called the Kimberley Hotel. Its peculiar décor and architecture served as a perfect backdrop for some body-chilling vibrations that manifested themselves due to the goose-bump inducing music.
As explained in an earlier post, Levis, the culturally relevant international clothing brand whose brand propositioning makes it imperative for them to support Mzansi indigenous music organized the whole shindig. One of the exciting initiatives that they have established is the Levis Young Guns which serves as a launching pad for small, regional bands and most importantly as a catalyst for them to attain national acclaim.
For one of the Cape Town legs of the series, T.O.P. and Blaq Pearl, two exciting local acts that span the genres of hip hop and rhythm and blues, were tapped as the Young Guns who have the most potential to push the music envelope even further.
The party was blessed with the presence of some beautiful sistas and down to earth fellas who vibed to the music all night long.
The gig was opened up by the soothing sounds of Blaq Pearl, a deceivingly diminutive Cape Flats alumnus who has a voice so powerful and intimidating that it makes you wanna pray at her alter everyday. I must also add that Blaq Pearl has one of the tightest young bands in the country; I was particularly impressed with the saxophonist who carassed and blew his instrument so passionately that I became a bit petrified that he might burst his lungs if he hadn't slowed down.
Blaq Pearl ended her set with a crowd favourite, Move, a a track so jiggy and endearing that it makes you wanna do exactly that….. move your body, move your hips, move whatever it is that you got!
The next act of the evening, T.O.P, took to the stage to much cheering from his loyal fans who had just seen him make a cameo appearance at the previous night’s Planetary Assault gig. As y’all might know, the spontaneous MC is also a member of Archetypes, an underground hip hop trio that have been grinding in the CT scene for a number of years now.
Recently though, T.O.P. decided to put out a solo album which sees him rhyming entirely in vernac (Xhosa), something that he has never pursued seriously before. If the songs that he performed at the gig are anything to go by, it is almost set in stone that the Gugulethu native is going to blow up big time with his new found solo career.
Backed by the equally over-zealous Kritsi, T.O.P. belted joint after joint with unparalleled oomph and passion leaving the “Ringo Big Pimpin” t-shirt that he was spotting drenched in sweat.
Although, the evening could have achieved a bigger turnout, it will go down as an awesome showcase of the amazing talent that Mzansi possesses.
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