The Cape Town Jazz Festival is a big part of the annual events calendar and this year's edition of the fest looks like it's going to be explosive. We attended the launch yesterday and mingled with some of the hottest stars in Mzansi music, our media friends and the MC of the day, Unathi Msengana.
Last year's lineup was pretty strong, who can forget having a legend like Erykah Badu headlining? So the anticipation in the air was high as many wanted to see some equally big acts announced this year. From the beginning of the event the tone that had been set was one of local appreciation, and we were assured that it would still be receiving crazy media attention.
And then it was time for what we'd all been waiting for: The announcements for this year's Cape Town Jazz festival. Local acts such as Donald, Ringo Madlingozi, Naima Kay, Beatenberg received plenty of applause while the likes of Al Jarreau and Basia ensured that the international contingent was well represented. Have a look at the full lineup below:
After the announcements were made we took the opportunity to speak to Donald and Ringo, two South African heavyweights in their own rights. It was Donald's first time at the Cape Town Jazz Festival, here's what he had to say;
"Cape Town Jazz Festival is an event I've dreamt of doing for years, in fact ever since I Started performing! I'm just so happy that it's happening in my career now, I'm very proud of myself, I'm going to be on stage with some of the biggest legends in world music. I'm so thankful to everybody involved"
Meanwhile, Ringo Madlingozi was pleased to see several South African acts on the lineup,
"I just love the fact that there's about 70% South African because we have to show what we have, and I mean charity begins at home. This will be the third time I'm doing Jazz festival and I am glad to see people like Naima Mclean joining me"
It's a very tasty lineup; we're already saving up for our tickets to this year's Cape Town Jazz Festival! Which acts do you look forward to seeing the most?