Hip Hop Kaslam Spaza Awards

This weekend the inaugural Hip Hop Kaslam Spaza Awards will go down at the Baxter Theatre in Cape Town. Saturday night will see some of South Africa's finest spaza artists celebrated at a ceremony that is directed by Dat. A member of the Hip Hop Kaslam collective, Dat let me know that as these things tend to go, a whole lot of financial sponsors didn’t come rushing to the awards’ aid so this is an occasion that is going to need everyone who likes spaza rap to step out and support so they can grow. I’m hoping in this day and age, I don’t have to explain to you guys what spaza is but if you’re still not sure, the nominees list might give you an idea:

Best Spaza Album:
On Toes by Dat
Bread and Butter by Rattex
Nam by Sugah
Mabatshe by Vegita

Best Spaza Female Artist:
Buli
Kanyi

Best Spaza Beatmaker:
Hipe
Maddflava
Mashonisa
Mtezman
Purple Beats
Pyro
Pzho

Best Spaza Male Artist:
Axo Uphambene
Dat
Maxhoseni
Sugah

Best Spaza Video:
Saisir L’Avenir by Salaam Kivu All Stars
Ingoma by Kanyi
Impilo Yam by Kritsi
Reveye by Nomadic Massive

Best Spaza Performer:
Andiswa Zanele
Buli
Dat
Jargon
Pincode

Best Spaza Group:
DSO
Jargon
Undecided Crew

Best Spaza Lyricist:
Axo Uphambene
Dat
Jargon
Ndlulamthi
Pincode
Rattex
Slashmynd

Best Spaza Song:
Istory se Jankie by Dat
Libambe Lingatshon by DSO featuring Mel J
Imbandezelo by Jargon
Listen To Your Heart by Matic featuring Slashmynd
Honey by Maxhoseni
Say What You Say by Request Crew featuring Mr P

The show is at The Baxter Theatre on 15 September and kicks off at 5pm. Tickets are R40 at Computicket

Can You Pay My Bills

Can you pay my telephone bills, can you pay my auto-mo-bills...?
Ha! The curse of being a Beyonce stan. Nevermind me folks, this right here is about Ill Skillz. Earlier this year Cape Town's Tommy Jinxx and Jimmy Flexx - known as Ill Skillz - hooked up Skillz That Pay The Bills, a 24-hour project that consisted of them recording an entire album (with collabs), shooting a music video and performing some of the music from that album. That's normal, right? Not if you have to do it ALL in 24 hours!

But the Head Honcho affiliated cats pulled it off. They're living in the 21st century and doing something mean to it. You don't believe us? Here's the proof (you know some people don't believe anything unless it's on youtube):


No wonder there are talks of them doing a lil sum-sum overseas. Thatha Ill Skillz! Oh, and about my bills... holla at us Uno!

Back To The City

Dominique, Osmic and their friends are at it again. The cause for many a head's excitement, the annual Back to the City, will be held next week Tuesday (April 27) in Newtown. This Freedom Day Festival is an all-day hip hop gig featuring some of the country's biggest names in hip hop.

Above: Archetypes

Expect to see "live music, street art, break-dancing, art installation, skateboarding, film, street soccer, street fashion, gaming, speakers and panel discussions." That means you can watch graff masters do their thing while the likes of Archetypes, Illiterate Skills, Driemanskap, Reason, Mothipa, Zuluboy, Prokid, Tumi, Kenzhero and the Music Atlast DJs are on stage.

Above: Ill Skillz

The Back to the City Freedom Day Festival is from 10am to 11pm on 27 April under the bridge next to Ritual Stores on the corner of Bree and Henry Nxumalo Street in Newtown. Entrance is R50.

ETC Crew

Now lately The Ordinary Girl and Dude don't get out much but this weekend we gave it our best shot. We dragged ourselves out to O.S.T. where the ETC Crew was the featured act at this month's Party People. To be completely honest, we were not too familiar with the crew (we basically had to wikipedia and google them til we found the above awesome picture on their blog. Ahem... No shame in our game). So we had a little pow wow to get familiar with the fellas and talk about music, foreign lands and of course, sneakers.



And part 2

"Just B Fucking Great At Ur Art"

Awesomery courtesy of http://colour-filimi.blogspot.com/

So I drag my feet to the monitor and push the on button. The computer lights up and I think maybe Mondays are not so bad. The office is deserted and I have Fifi singing “my good eye, beautiful eye… beauty, music from my beautiful eye” on my mind. A topless Tumi greets me with mic in hand from the desktop background and I think: man, I love my job. And how did I get here? Well, a dream led to this. I start racking my brain about whether I still have the Tumi EP of the same name. Those songs were boss and most of you only know the joints that The Volume played live and made SA staples once Tumi and The Volume was born. Tumi (possibly my favourite emcee as you’ve figured by now) broke his discography down in the twitterverse:

RT @Herimbi: A dream led to this. Bless. 12:28 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

First CD I ever recorded was called TAO of Tumi... an EP/showcase. it was done with/at Flowerpot Studios. "Never Deny You" came from that.12:31 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

2nd was an offiacial EP, the only Vinyl I have ever pressed. "A Dream Led To This" featd These women, yvonne, innerview, she spirit fancies.12:34 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

3rd on the list was a super dooper rare disc of both "Tao of Tumi" and "a dream led to this" EPs, this was when the Volume got started.12:36 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

Then came the "at the Bassline" with Tumi and the Volume. 76, Yvonne, People of the light. first T.V appeareance Phat Joe Show 2002.12:39 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

@Herimbi remember, the band started playing my songs live & then later made new stuff together. welcome and people, people were all Volume12:41 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck in reply to Herimbi

I was kinda in now, featured on some Rage compilations, poetry appearances & was doing the rounds in peoples cribs via Backstage, Mojo, etc12:44 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

"once upon a time in africa" Fro pick, Zubz's "heavy 8" "sex, drug & alcohol" with Verb some of the better things that came from features.12:49 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

TATVolume 2nd & 1st studio album was labour intensive. u felt it in the music, not as lively, but well thought out. best thing I have done.12:50 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

this is what really took us out of the country for real. countrywide tours in Canada did France, U.K, Belgium, Switzerland...12:52 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

Then started MOTIF RECORDS with a close friend, did a compilation KE SHO CASE SHOWCASE featured little known Knaan & FIfi, Duo live, Syntax12:57 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

was preparing to do Fifi album when close friend messed with my girl and shit collapsed. Business pear shaper, heart in disarray.1:00 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

I went to Amsterdam to do a poetry tour (with Ntshiki Mazwai) dont worry nothing happened. lol! and the poetry did not heal me. I was mad.1:02 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

came home to some beats and a very lonely studio. Started "Music From my Good Eye" this album saved me.1:05 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

try and picture recording yourself, listening back, mixing stuff as GPS to the parts of your heart scattered all over the world.1:08 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

Got some SAMA nominations, which ordinarily dont mean much to me but to know that I did that record on my "own" as a "I will survive" shit!!1:09 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

oh yeah did what I think is the best mixtape to ever coem out of S.A with DJ PapercuTT, went on the road with him and smashed!!!!!1:13 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

the last 3 years. HHP ruled. Prokid brought excitment (aside from that 2nd album of his). Skwatta vanished. Slikour arrived. Motswako....1:18 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

.....was almost a movement. (the Motswako dudes never seemed comfortable with Jabba at the top) so that fizzled.1:19 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

Zubz made great music, Wish he would leave already. and now...... things get glitzy babeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!1:23 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

Da L.E.S is a great kid, cool entertainer, stylish but NO mc. U dont need to know how to rap to be a successful rapper.1:27 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

Jozi, Maggz, Morale make everyone involved in the last three years of hip hop nervous. and that is great... the REFRESH button is important1:28 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

It would be nice to lose to an mc WHO CAN ACTUALLY FUCKING RAP. what does Usain Bolt do when the guy walking behind him gets the medal.1:31 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

Worse song I have ever done was "never take it for Granted' feat Arno Carstens. and trust i could rerelease that and smash with it.1:32 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

I am not saying I am Usain Bolt. I am just saying, I Run hard & everyone in the stadium is saying "why is that big dude running so hard?"1:34 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

When you hear that from the stands, all you doing is running for ur own health. my point? I do it hard cuz I'll get sick if i am not sick.1:37 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

Just for the record, this was supposed to be a retrospective. No bitching. I dont want anyone saying we are underrated or not appreciated.1:39 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

There r things you can control and things u cant. How else you explain Arthur's career, jokes!! Just b FUCKING GREAT AT UR ART. dont hate.1:42 AM Aug 31st from TweetDeck

The Blagg don't hate.