Freshlyground
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| Freshlyground | |
|---|---|
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| Origin | Cape Town, South Africa |
| Years active | 2002 – present |
| Genres | Folk Afropop Jazz Indie Rock |
| Labels | Sony BMG Africa Freeground Records (Independiente) |
| Members | Zolani Mahola Simon Attwell Peter Cohen Kyla Rose Smith Julio Sigauque Josh Hawks Aron Turest-Swartz |
| Website(s) | www.freshlyground.com |
Freshlyground is a South African Afro-Fusion band that was formed in Cape Town in 2002. The band members hail from South Africa, Mozambique and Zimbabwe. Stylistically, Freshlyground incorporates elements of traditional South African music (such as kwela and African folk), blues and jazz, as well as features of indie rock. The lead singer is Zolani Mahola whose distinctive voice contributes much to the band's unique sound.
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[edit] Band members
- Zolani Mahola – Lead vocals
- Simon Attwell – Flute, Mbira, Harmonica
- Peter Cohen – Drums
- Kyla Rose Smith – Violin, Vocals
- Julio "Gugs" Sigauque – Acoustic Guitar
- Josh Hawks – Bass Guitar, Vocals
- Aron Turest-Swartz – Keyboards, Percussion, Vocals
[edit] History
[edit] Jika Jika (2003)
Freshlyground launched their debut album, Jika Jika, in early 2003. The great success of this album ultimately kick-started their career and re-affirmed their reputation as a fresh and vibrant young face in South African music. The much-needed exposure from the album resulted in an invitation for the band to perform at both the Harare International Festival of the Arts and the Robben Island African Festival.
[edit] Nomvula (2004-Present)
Early in 2004, Freshlyground participated in the opening of South African Parliament by performing before President Thabo Mbeki in an event organised as a celebration of 10 years of democracy in South Africa.
At the Harare International Festival of the Arts, Freshlyground performed with Zimbabwean musician Oliver Mtukudzi, who is also renowned for his diverse blending of different African music genres.
The band went on to perform alongside local legends Miriam Makeba, Stanley Clarke and Femi Kuti at the North Sea Jazz Festival, held during April in Cape Town. July also marked a break from the recording studio for the band, who had been working hard on their then unreleased album Nomvula. The band took this time to perform at the Villa Celimontana Festival in Rome, Italy.
Finally, in late 2004, Freshlyground released their most recent album Nomvula. Although the uptake of the album was initially slow, it eventually went on to achieve double platinum status locally. Initial success was largely due to the catchy, feel-good, lyrics of Doo Be Doo, which enjoyed significant play on local radio. Follow-up hits included I'd like and the signature track Nomvula, the former achieving unprecedented success on radio charts such as the 5FM Top 40, where it remained at No. 1 for several weeks.[1]
[edit] Current Events
[edit] Tours (2006)
Freshlyground completed a national tour in May, with their performance at Kirstenbosch (Cape Town) being one of the most notable events. They will be performing at various venues in the United Kingdom during June and July before moving onto Germany and Belgium in August.[2] After a short break in this tour, they will come back to Europe in September for performances in The Netherlands, Germany, United Kingdom, France and Italy.
[edit] World Cup Handover
In July 2006, Freshlyground took part in the official handing over ceremony for the 2010 FIFA World Cup[3], due to take place in South Africa. The band performed at the ceremony, which was held during closing of the last World Cup in Germany.
[edit] Future Plans
[edit] Next Album
Freshlyground have started preparing to record their 3rd album, due for release in September 2007. The album will again be produced by JB Arthur and Victor Masondo, and will be recorded in [[Cape Town].
[edit] International Markets
The band has announced their intentions to secure releases internationally due to increased interest in the US and Europe; To this end they have recently signed a deal with Sony BMG Africa to facilitate better distribution of future releases. Currently, their 2nd album (Nomvula), is expected to be distributed to the United Kingdom, France, Italy and Germany by August 2006.
[edit] Awards
South African Music Awards
In 2005, Freshlyground was nominated for three awards at the South African Music Awards. However, they failed to win any of these titles, losing out to other popular artists such as Zola and Simphiwe Dana.
MTV Europe Music Awards Freshlyground has been awarded 'Best African Act' on 2 November 2006 at the annual MTV Europe Music Awards, which were held in Copenhagen, Denmark. This made them the first South African musical act to ever be awarded an MTV award.
[edit] Discography
[edit] Jika Jika (2003)
- 1. Train Love (4:12)
- 2. Ocean Floor (3:15)
- 3. Rain (5:07)
- 4. Castles In The Sky (3:20)
- 5. Feels Like Sunday (3:40)
- 6. Mbira No. 2 (2:18)
- 7. Zipho Phezulu (3:06)
- 8. Mali (4:07)
- 9. Castles In The Sky (3:36)
- 10. Mowbray Kaap (6:04)
- 11. Nomvula (7:27)
[edit] Nomvula (2004)
- 1. I am the man (4:57)
- 2. Nomvula (4:46)
- 3. Manyana (5:13)
- 4. Vanish (5:20)
- 5. Zithande (4:40)
- 6. I'd like (6:25)
- 7. Doo Be Doo (5:14)
- 8. Things Have Changed (4:17)
- 9. Buttercup (5:37)
- 10. Human Angels (6:25)
- 11. Father Please (4:03)
- 12. Mowbray Kaap (6:04)
- 13. Touch In The Night (2:42)
- 14. Doo Be Doo (Remix) (European Bonus Track)
[edit] External links
- Freshlyground – Official site
- MUSIC.ORG.ZA – Music.org.za entry on Freshlyground
- Last.fm
[edit] References
- ^ 5FM Top 40 Chart. Retrieved on Error: invalid time.
- ^ Freshlyground Gigs. Retrieved on Error: invalid time.
- ^ News24 Article on 2010 handover. Retrieved on Error: invalid time.
