Morena Leraba: From The Village To The World Stage
Lesotho. The only country in the world landlocked by a single country, South Africa, and the country that raised me. Growing up, we were surrounded by music, but little of it came from within our borders, especially when it came to contemporary music. In fact, the only group that gained any kind of real prominence outside our borders was Sankomota, made up of musicians like Frank Leepa, Moss Nkofu, Black Jesus, Moruti Selate, Tšepo Tšola and Pitso Sera. In more recent years, there have been rappers like Hymphatic Thabs and Kommanda Obbs, musicians like Bhudaza and Tsepo Tsola as a solo...
Travel: Family Time At Tsitsikamma
Most Friday mornings, the house is filled with alarms, water running, crying and grumbling, and a stern voice shouting for children to bath, brush their teeth, have their breakfasts and get ready to leave for school. This Friday morning, however, there was a very different energy, one that you could almost reach out a pat it gently. There was still a voice shouting that children must get ready but, this time, it wasn’t for school but rather to catch a flight to Port Elizabeth and then a drive to South African National Parks' Tsitsikamma National Park. Growing up, we were ‘forced’ to take...
My More Than Data Interview with Investec
The world has become increasingly data driven and, whether we like it or not, we are leaking personal data at an alarming rate, consciously and unconsciously. And companies are mining this data to try and determine what are the best products and services to create and provide us. Investopedia defines data mining as: “a process used by companies to turn raw data into useful information. By using software to look for patterns in large batches of data, businesses can learn more about their customers and develop more effective marketing strategies as well as increase sales and decrease costs....
The Future Of Work In Technology
The flaws in our collective education systems globally have been widely documented, in particular how we are educating our children for jobs that will not exist in the near future. In the World Economic Forum Regional Community Briefing document: Human Capital Outlook (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) 2016, it was stated that “By one popular estimate, 65% of children entering primary school today will ultimately end up working in completely new job types that don’t yet exist. In many industries and countries, the most in-demand occupations did not exist 10 or even five years ago, and...
The Rolls-Royce Black Badge Launched In South Africa
Rolls-Royce. Founded in UK in 1904 by Charles Stewart Rolls and Sir Frederick Henry Royce, there’s something about a Rolls that will forever resonate. The Spirit of Ecstacy on the ‘nose’ announcing your arrival while leading into the future. The simple feeling of luxury and comfort that permeates each vehicle they manufacture! When the Daytona Group officially brought the Rolls-Royce into South Africa, as well as Aston Martin and MacLaren, they hosted a Best of British Day at the Killarney Country Club and, while everyone was in a rush to sign up to drive the MacLaren MP4-12C, my ride...
Win Vouchers And Cash To Spend With Visa Checkout
In 2016, Visa launched Visa Checkout in South Africa, designed to make purchasing online easier as well as secure. Security continues to be a factor that makes us uncomfortable about buying things online, especially from a South African context. In a study by Effective Measure, sponsored by IAB South Africa and Visa: 53% of those who don’t buy online said they did not trust online payments indicated zero liability or some form of online protection as a motivating factor to engage in more online shopping. 58% say a delivery payment option would motivate them to do more online payments; 48% of...
Finding Your Moments of Quiet Amidst The Cacophony
Last year, I was asked by Glenfiddich whiskey to speak at a series of events they were holding with their consumers. The brief was to speak about ‘charisma’. The Cambridge dictionary defines charisma as “a special power that some people have naturally that makes them able to influence other people and attract their attention and admiration.” This was difficult. How do I speak on something that I find indefinable, especially when positioned as an ‘expert’ on this? Instead, having, at the time, recently read Susan Cain’s book, Quiet – The Power Of Introverts In A World That...
The Jameson Irish Whiskey Nation
The debate on who invented whiskey/whisky, between the Scottish and the Irish, has raged for years, including spelling. You have Irish whiskey and Scottish whisky. Most use the Scottish spelling and the greater attention has been on them but Irish whiskey also has a place. South Africa is a top market for Jameson, in particular Jameson Special Reserve. I would, however, contend that, with the rest of the world also producing great whiskey/whisky, the taste of the liquid, and your palate, are more important. Trained as an engineer, Brian Nation is Master Distiller at the Jameson Midleton...
Forbes Africa: School Radio Taking Back The Air Waves
Over the last year, I have been doing a bit more freelancing writing with different publications. As editor of Destiny Man previously, I was not able to contribute to more spaces and it has been fun exploring a broader range of topics now that I can freelance. The reality, however, is that, it can be extremely difficult building a life solely as a freelancer so the approach I have taken is to write about subjects that are of interest to me and/or have a positive impact on the society. The Children's Radio Foundation is doing some great work with children continentally, using radio not only...
Mercedes-Benz, In Search Of A New Narrative
On the 11th of February, 1990, at 16:14, I was sitting in a hotel room – our house was being renovated - in Maseru, in front of the telly with my father and siblings. This was the date and time that Nelson Mandela finally walked free. This was an occasion that had significance not just for South Africans but Africans as a whole. The 26 years since that day have been marked with positives, negatives and the blurry areas in between. It is also easy to get caught up in the challenges the country faces, which can be a very dark place. "An arrow can only be shot by pulling it backward. So when...
The Fast Lane At Ferrari World, Abu Dhabi
We develop perceptions of ourselves as we grow. And, as we experience different aspects of life, we sometimes discover that these ideas of self are slightly off the mark. As a teenager, and into my twenties, I always saw myself as a ‘gung-ho’ alpha male-type. I wanted to try skydiving, bungee-jumping, luge and everything in between. Then, one day, with a group of friends, I went rap jumping, off the top of The Parktonian Hotel in Braamfontein, Joburg. Rap jumping is essentially abseiling but you go down face first. Although I did four jumps, I was terrified. For the first jump, the...
Vodacom NXT LVL Putting Footballers Through School
Having played various sports as a child and teenager, as well as watching my nine-year old explore different sports, including rugby and football, I sincerely believe that participating in sports can have immense benefits for a child growing up. At my son’s football sessions, the coaches are fair but don’t allow for messing around. They expect discipline, the desire to work hard, the understanding that it is about team work and having fun. I have seen introverted and/or shy children, including my boy, come into their own on the training field and, in talking to other parents, we see it carry...
The Joy Of Riding The BMW R Nine T
It is a Sunday morning. Outside the Bonafide Barbers shop on the border of Parktown North and Parkhurst in Joburg, there’s a melee of motorcycles parked. Predominantly Harleys and Triumphs, there are also a couple of Ducati Scramblers, KTMs, and BMWs. I have been looking forward to this Sunday for over week because, firstly, I have been wanting to go riding with the Bonafide peeps, secondly, it’s a decent length ride out to the Nigel Pan and, most importantly, I’m riding the BMW R Nine T. My soundtrack for the ride was the new Frank Ocean album, Blond, which fit the occasion to a T. I...
Exploring Abu Dhabi With Montecasino
While the world may be getting smaller with technology bringing us closer together, there is still much to be learned from travelling to a place and submerging yourself in what is on offer with an open mind. I have been fortunate enough to travel to many places but I still hanker for new spaces to engage with. To understand people, it is important to wander their world, getting a snapshot of their lives, their culture, their experience. I always enjoy listening to radio and watching television in each place I visit, even when I don’t understand the language. The one region I have never...
Digital Crates: NPR Tiny Desk Concerts
I love music. And I love great ideas around how to package and share music. The evolution of technology has both totally disrupted industries as well as provided the tools to be able to share great music. In creating Digital Crates on this site, I have tried to share what I come across while traversing the world of the interwebs, albeit inconsistently. The non-profit NPR hosts Tiny Desk Concerts, which is a simple yet powerful concept – bring in artists to perform in a corner of their offices and film them. The intimacy of the performances place the spotlight firmly on the music...
VISA Seeks To Redefine The Future of Payment
By the time my daughter was 2 years old, she knew what YouTube was. She was born into a household with an iPad. My son was her conduit into the world of technology. While I spend quite a bit of time trying to keep with technological developments to ensure that I can both monitor and protect them, my children were born into a world where things like mobile phones, laptops, wi-fi, etc are commonplace. I often have conversations with them about how we took pictures with cameras that used film or how cellphones only became pervasive when I was in my twenties. They are fascinated by ATMs and how...