Freshlyground

South African Afro-Fusion band

Afro fusion
folk
afropop
jazz

Years active2002–2019Labels

Sony BMG Africa
Freeground

Members

Simon Attwell
Peter Cohen
Julio Sigauque
Josh Hawks
Seredeal "Shaggy" Scheepers

Past members

Zolani Mahola
Kyla-Rose Smith
Aron Turest-Swartz

Websitefreshlyground.com

Freshlyground was a South African band formed in Cape Town in 2002 and whose genres span between jazz, blues and kwela.^[1] The band members have different backgrounds, including those from South Africa, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe. Freshlyground's musical style blends various elements such as traditional South African music which the band dubbed as "Afro fusion".^[2] They are best known for their performance on the single "Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)" with Colombian singer Shakira, which received worldwide recognition. The music video – featuring the group – also received over 3 billion views on YouTube.^{[citation needed]}

On 15 August 2019, Mahola officially announced the launch of her solo career while the Freshlyground band went on to have their last performance after 17 successful years together on 31 December 2019 at Kirstenbosch Gardens in Cape Town.[3]

Band members

Zolani Mahola (2002–2019) – lead vocals
Simon Attwell (2002–present) – flute saxophone keyboard and band management
Peter Cohen (2002–present) – drums
Julio "Gugs" Sigauque (2002–present) – lead guitar (steel-string acoustic guitar)
Chris "Bakkies" Bakalanga (2016–present) – lead guitar
Kyla-Rose Smith (2003–2016) – violin and vocals
Josh Hawks (2002–present) – bass, backing vocals
Shaggy Scheepers (2008–present) – percussion
Aron Turest-Swartz (2002–2009) – keyboard

Afro fusion

The band's sound is described and termed as "afro fusion" which is an admixture of time-honoured South African music such as kwela additionally blues, indie rock and jazz.^[1]^[3] "Waka Waka (This Time For Africa)" is the band's most celebrated as well as global leading demonstration of the afro-fusion musical style and genre.^[4]

History

Jika Jika (2003)

Freshlyground released their debut album, Jika Jika, in early 2003. The commercial 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 commercial success of this album launched their career through their reputation as a vibrant South African band. The exposure from this 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. This album was remixed by Keith Farquharson, remastered by Chris Athens and re-released in 2008.^[5]

Nomvula (2004–2006)

In 2004, Freshlyground participated in the opening of Parliament of South Africa by perfoganised as a celebration of ten years of democracy in South Africa.

At the Harare International Festival of the Arts (HIFA), Freshlyground performed with Zimbabwean musician Oliver Mtukudzi.

The band went on to perform alongside local legend Miriam Makeba, as well as 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 very successful 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, it was also covered in Indonesian by singer Gita Gutawa. 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.^[6]

Ma'Cheri (2007)

The album Ma'Cheri was released on 3 September 2007. The album was again produced by JB Arthur and Victor Masondo, engineered by David Langemann and was recorded in Cape Town. The first single is called Pot Belly followed by Fired Up and Desire.

Radio Africa (2010)

Freshlyground's album Radio Africa was released in May 2010, and as part of the album release, they released a collaborative music video with the ZANews puppeteers. A satirical track about Robert Mugabe (Chicken to Change) has received coverage in the British media.

Cape Town Stadium Soccer Festival

On 23 January 2010, Freshlyground performed at the official inauguration game at the new Cape Town Stadium, where local Cape Town football clubs Ajax Cape Town and Santos played each other in a match decided on penalties.

2010 FIFA World Cup

A song by Colombian pop star Shakira and Freshlyground was the official song of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The song, titled "Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)", is based on "Zangalewa", a popular Makossa African soldiers' song by Golden Sounds. "Zangalewa" was a hit single in Colombia in 1987. Shakira and Freshlyground performed the song at the pre-tournament kick-off concert in Soweto on 10 June.

The following July, the band also took part in the official handing-over ceremony,^[7] which took place in South Africa.

The Legend (2013)

"This album captures the emotion, the passion and the energy of our live performances", explains violinist Kyla-Rose Smith adding, "our live concerts have always been at the bedrock of our popularity", she says.^[8]

Honours

In 2005, Freshlyground was nominated for three South African Music Awards for their 2004 album, Nomvula. Although they won no SAMAs that year, in 2008 the Recording Industry of South Africa awarded them the coveted Best Duo or Group SAMA. In the same year, their 2007 album Ma' Cheri won the prestigious Album of the Year SAMA, as well as Best Adult Contemporary Album: English, and Best Engineer.

At the 2006 MTV Europe Music Awards in Copenhagen, Freshlyground became the first South African musical act to receive honours from MTV, when they received the MTV Europe Music Award for Best African Act.

At the 2008 Channel O Music Video Awards, the band received the "Best Africa, Southern" accolade for their single "Pot Belly".^[9] In 2008 the band was awarded the South African Music Awards for their album "Macheri."^[10]

Discography

Albums

Jika Jika (2003)
Nomvula (2004) - #ITA 96^[11]
Ma' Cheri (2007)
Radio Africa (2010)
Take Me to the Dance (2012)
The Legend (2013)

As featured artists

"Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)" (2010 FIFA World Cup single by Shakira)

References

^ ^a ^b Howell, Rob (17 November 2015). "Freshlyground: South Africa's secret hit-making machine". CNN. Archived from the original on 16 November 2015. Retrieved 8 November 2023.
^ "Namibia: Freshly Ground to Lead City Jazz Fest". All Africa. 22 August 2014. Archived from the original on 1 September 2014. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
^ Mshale Team, News Agencies (1 February 2013). "Freshlyground – Refreshing music hailing from South Africa". Mshale The African Community Newspaper. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
^ Flores, Griselda (30 November 2022). "Why Shakira Remains the Queen of World Cup Music". Billboard. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
^ Jika Jika, 2008, album liner notes
^ "5FM Top 40 Chart". Archived from the original on 27 September 2006. Retrieved 1 March 2006.
^ "News24 Article on 2010 handover". Archived from the original on 1 October 2007. Retrieved 1 July 2006.
^ "Album – African Cream | Freshlyground Store". Archived from the original on 14 May 2014. Retrieved 14 May 2014.
^ Museke: Channel O Music Video Awards 2008 winners Archived 12 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine
^ "Freshlyground win 4 Samas". News24. 5 May 2008. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
^ "Nomvula by Freshlyground – Music Charts". acharts.co. Retrieved 14 August 2018.