Maftown Heights seven times better
NEWTOWN – The 7th annual Maftown Heights festival had festival-goers dancing in the rain while being entertained by big names on the hip-hop scene.
The seventh annual Maftown Heights hit Newtown at the Mary Fitzgeral Square and despite the rainy weather, the festival was well attended.
Fans were enthralled with top performances ranging from unknowns to the big stars of South African hip-hop.
Maftown Heights is a Motswako-themed festival, which celebrates Setswana rap music and culture as a genre of hip-hop music, originally from Mahikeng in the North West.
Founder of the Motswako festival, Honeydew resident and hip-hop artist Khulane Morule, better known by his stage name Khuli Chana, ended the show with his ‘Absolut’ moment that had fans screaming for more. He lit up the stage with his performance of his new song, One Source. Fireworks were launched from the stage lighting up the sky with multi colours.
During some performances, Vodacom gave away purple airtime strips and made it a night to remember. One thing that set this festival apart from others was the live band that played with the artists on stage. The band added a different flair and even elevated the songs that the fans already knew.
B3nch Marq, A-Reece, Nasty C, Ricky Ricky, NoMoozly, AKA, Anatii, and Emtee, joined the festival under the Friends of Motswako banner; while festival regulars such as Fifi Cooper, Tuks Senganga, Momolemi, Lection, Casper Nyovest and HHP represented the Motswako brand.
A surprise performance was given by Mdu Masilela and even though he has not released a song in several years, fans danced the night away to his famous hit songs such as 50/50.
Hip-hop artist, Sean Pages performed for the third time and said that he enjoyed his set. “Motswako is one of the first authentic South African hip-hop genres that propelled the movement of hip-hop forward and, despite the new trap sound that has emerged, it’s still continuing to make its presence felt,” he said.
New hip-hop group called Super Fresh, trekked all the way from Mahikeng to perform for the first time at the festival.
Towdee Mac, a Motswako rapper, performed for the seventh time at Maftown Heights; one of the songs he performed was Yes Chick and he also did some backup rapping for Khuli Chana during his set.
