An SA Perspective
Words from South AfricaArchive for June, 2009
The Show is Over: Musica pays tribute to Michael Jackson
SA entertainment retail chain, Musica has payed tribute to the late King of Pop, Michael Jackson by releasing this ad.
The ad which was created by the creative’s of The Jupiter Drawing Room, was produced and released live within 24 hours of the Pop Stars death.
Morne Steyn kicks Springboks to victory to clench series win over Lions
Springbok super sub, Morne Steyn who is hailed as the darling of Loftus, lived up to his title on Saturday by kicking a last minute 55 metre penalty to clench the second game as well as the three match series against the touring British and Irish Lions.
Along with Bok flanker, Schalk Burger getting sin- binned in the first minute for gouging winger Luke Fitzgerald’s eye and the Lions Stephen Jones stretching a lead of 19- 8 with his boot (after a try by team mate Mike Phillips), Bok fans were silenced until local boy, Bryan Habana leveled the playing field with a glorious try.
Ronan O Gara was penalized for taking Fourie du Preez in the air giving Steyn the opportunity to test his nerve with the critical kick from inside his own half to clench the game for the World Champions.
The final game will take place at Coca Cola (Ellis) Park, Johannesburg on Saturday 4 July.
FIFA names Distell as official wine supplier to 2010
FIFA has named SA based Alcohol company, Distell as the official supplier of wine to the FIFA 2010 Soccer World Cup.
As part of the Distell/ FIFA deal, the Stellenbosch winemakers will release a range of Nederburg wines consisting of Cabernet Sauvignon, Sauvignon Blanc and Rosé which will be available in the UK from July 2009 to the end of the world cup year.
The limited edition Nederburg wines will also be available in SA and distributed in Ireland, Germany, Canada, Sweden as well as countries throughout Africa, Asia and South America.
FIFA Confederations Cup kicks off in SA
June 15, 2009, Ellis Park Stadium, Johannesburg- SA welcomed the soccer world yesterday at the Ellis Park Stadium for the Opening of the dress rehearsal for next years World Cup- the FIFA Confederations Cup.
Although South African fans can be disappointed in the performance by national team, Bafana Bafana drawing to Iraq in a goalless match, the 30 minute opening ceremony was definitely worth being proud of.
700 school pupils were featured as a human SA flag while they formed a giant formation before painting the FIFA Confederations Cup logo on a giant banner whilst being circled by the flags of the eight nations participating in the tournament.
Jazz icon, Hugh Masekela and Lebo M and Yvonne Chaka Chaka announced the teams before FIFA President, Sepp Blatter and SA President, Jacob Zuma declared the tournament under way.
Levi’s Vintage Sunday’s bringing an intimate music experience
2009 marks another year of the Levis Vintage Sundays with another hot new lineup of SA artists.
The notion offers South Africans a chance to see the best of SA artists perform in a more intimate and relaxed environment. A major plus being, as part of Levi’s commitment to original SA music, the iconic jeans label have footed the entire bill for production, artists and promotion of the gig’s, making it free to the public.
The Cape Town leg of the tour kicked off at Jade Lounge in Green Point with Gerald Clark, Albert Frost Band and Lonesome Dave Ferguson playing last weekend. Last night saw Hot Water performing their African acoustic sounds to a supportive audience who were waiting for the main act, Flat Stanley.
Flat Stanley, now known as Mac Stanley (derived from lead singer Andy Mac) once again didn’t disappoint their fans. Despite some technical problems it was definitely worth the wait listening to Andy and his band singing I Warrior, Paper Thin, Summers On It’s Way and even some covers of what they used to sound like before they landed a record deal.
A great example of the intimacy of the gig is when Andy walked around the bar singing a cover of Snow Patrols Chasing Cars hit while offering the mic to anyone brave enough to sing with him.
Vintage Sundays will be taking place every Sunday at Jade Lounge. Future gigs are:
21 June – Jitsvinger Acoustic Trio, Ezra, Under The Poetree
28 June – Farryl Purkiss, Tina Schouw, Simon Van Gend
5 July – Jack Mantis Band, Bed on Bricks,
12 July – Jac Sharp, Prime Circle
19 July – Steve Newman, Saudiq Khan, Babu
26 July – Gary Thomas, Julia Jakobsen, Andy Lund
Morgan Freeman Plays Nelson Mandela in New Eastwood Film
Morgan Freeman as Nelson Mandela
Morgan Freeman, Matt Damon and Clint Eastwood were recently on SA shores for the making of the movie Invictus which is an adaptation of the much acclaimed John Carlin book, Playing the Enemy: Nelson Mandela and the Game That Made a Nation.
Freeman plays former South African President Nelson Mandela where Damon plays the role of former World Cup winning Springbok captain Francois Pienaar.
The movie is set around the Springboks winning the 1995 World Cup which signifies how South Africa as a nation, publicly united for the first time after the Apartheid era.
Invictus which refers to a poem by William Ernest Henley which was often recited by Mandela will be released in theaters on December 11th, 2009.
Matt Damon as Francois Pienaar
20 000 Volunteers Help Clean Up Jo’burg City
Last Saturday more than 20 000 volunteers could be seen across Johannesburg, sporting blue overalls and gloves for Pickitup Clean- Up Day, aimed at cleaning up the city before the Confederations Cup which kicks off this week.
The response was brilliant with over 60 000 rubbish bags been distributed throughout the city for the clean- up, where volunteers were tasked to “work” at 74 sites including Mary Fitzerald Square and Joubert Park.
Chief Executive of community radio station, Jozi FM, said that “We do this to raise awareness and we want to say that it is important to keep our spaces clean…to create a volunteer spirit.”
According to an article on Independent Online (IOL), “It costs Pikitup four times more to clean up illegal dumping than normal rubbish. Those costs were passed on to the ratepayer.”
Proteas: Blistering Start to Twenty20 Campaign
Cricket fans world wide were reminded how different a game of Twenty20 cricket can be with the World Cup in England kicking off last Friday.
The tournament started off by having two major upsets with the Netherlands beating the host nation and the West Indies slamming the Aussies.
Fortunately for SA cricket fans, the Proteas had a blistering start to their campaign at The Oval where they beat Scotland by 130 runs.
AB de Villiers was by far the star of the game smashing six sixes, and five boundaries for his 79 (not out) off 34 balls whilst veteran Jacques Kallis scored 48 with skipper Graeme Smith making 38 to help the Proteas post a final score of 211- 5- their highest ever score.
Dale Steyn took 2 wickets for 17 while Albie Morkel took 2-15. Off spinners Johan Botha and Roelof van der Merwe each took 2-17.
South Africa plays New Zealand at Lord’s on Tuesday.
For the first time a women’s Twenty20 tournament is taking place, running simultaneously with the ‘major’ event.
The ladies kick off their first match against the West Indies on Thursday.
Zuma keeping positive in tough times
SA President, Jacob Zuma addressed the country from a cold Cape Town for the state of the nation address yesterday June 3, 2009.
The President spoke at length about poverty, unemployment, crime, education and health care- all factors that are deemed as priorities to the SA public.
He explained that the government has identified 10 areas that will be aligned in their strategic framework during his reign.
With regards to industry the president explained that a scaled up investment plan aligned with a government plan to help certain sectors such as the, auto, textile and tourism industry will help fight the global crisis.
Zuma said the government wants to create four million jobs over the next five years with a goal of half of those being before the end of 2009.
With tertiary education being a major worry for poorer citizens it was predicted that the president would touch on the issue at length. “We will improve the access to higher education of children from poor families and ensure a sustainable funding structure for universities,” said Zuma.
In terms of crime, the president wishes to reduce both serious and violent crime by seven percent and 10 percent annually. “We changed the name of the relevant Ministry from Safety and Security to Police to emphasise that we want real operational energy in police work” explained Zuma.
In terms of health the President stated that “Our goal is to step up the fight against the scourge of HIV and AIDS, TB and other diseases.”
He requested for SA citizens to work together to reduce the rate of new HIV infections by 50% by the year 2011. “We want to reach 80% of those in need of ARV treatment also by 2011.”
Overall the Presidents speech was that of a positive nature. Now all that awaits South African citizens is deliverance.
For the full State of the Nation Address see State of the Nation
Springboks name squad to face the Lions
Springbok team management named the 2009 squad to face the British and Irish Lions for a three test series, last night in Johannesburg.
Bulls fly-half Morne Steyn is the only new face in the experienced squad that comprises of 10 of his Bulls team mates.
On Steyn’s selection, Coach Peter De Villiers stated that, “Morne Steyn earned his spot by performing week in, week out – he had an outstanding Super 14.”
A surprise choice was Lions flyhalf, Earl Rose who toured with the Springboks in 2008 but is yet to get a run in the Bok jersey. When questioned about Rose’s decision, De Villiers stated that he “hadn’t had a bad Super 14 run.”
The main question that arises with the new squad is, who will be playing at the fullback position, with Percy Montgomery retired and Stormers fullback, Conrad Jantjes breaking a leg in a Super 14 league game earlier this year.
The coach however is confident that he has enough talent to cover the position. “We have a number of options at fullback and it will be a matter of looking at combinations in the next couple of weeks,” he stated.
JP Pietersen, Frans Steyn and Earl Rose were the names that have come up to possibly play in the position. De Villiers explained that, “The deciding factor will be the style of rugby we want to play.”
The full Springbok Squad is: JP Pietersen, Francois Steyn, Earl Rose, Jongikhaya Nokwe, Odwa Ndungane, Jaque Fourie, Adrian Jacobs, Wynand Olivier, Jean de Villiers, Bryan Habana, Morne Steyn, Ruan Pienaar, Fourie du Preez, Enrico Januarie, Pierre Spies, Ryan Kankowski, Juan Smith, Schalk Burger, Danie Rossouw, Victor Matfield, Bakkies Botha, Andries Bekker, John Smit, Deon Carstens, Bismarck du Plessis, Chiliboy Ralepelle, Tendai Mtawarira, Gurthro Steenkamp.
The Springboks will face the British & Irish Lions in Durban on June 20, Pretoria on June 27 and Johannesburg on 4 July.
