Divine Dance Crew has the moves
The local dance crew use their talent to not only entertain the community but also to give back to those in need whenever they can.
POLOKWANE – The crew consists of three members, Medupi Rathobotha, Thedi Molope and Kutullo Sehloka, all born and bred in Ga-Matsia, better known as Iraq, a small village outside Turfloop. They grew up as brothers, attending the same primary schools, only parting ways when they went to high school. Divine Dance Crew SA was formed in February 2014 when the three, who had been dancing several years as solo acts, decided to combine their talent and skills.
“As there aren’t many activities happening in our community, we decided to form a dance crew with the aim of bringing entertainment to the people and inspiring others through our art.
“We are working tirelessly to build our brand which we hope will soon be known not only nationally but internationally as well as one of the best dance crews on the continent. We want to be known for our choreography and our dancing skills,” Thedi said.
When they started out, they never imagined the crew would reach a professional level until they met their manager, Matabo Mathekga.
“He approached us individually as he wanted to form a dance crew and he saw our talent and potential. He wanted to help us grow our craft into something we might one day use to provide for ourselves. Matabo brought us together and started to train and teach us many things about dance and choreography and that is how we began dancing together,” Kutullo explained.
Among the highlights of their journey they single out featuring in the music video of King Salama’s song Ndiya Ndiya, being the regional Limpopo champions of SABC 1’s Street Cred, performing at this year’s Church on the Hill Youth Day celebration and at the Youth Festival in Nelspruit.
They have also choreographed, opened and closed the show for the Fame SA Awards in 2015/16 and performed alongside award winning gospel artist, Winnie Mashaba last year at the Winnie Mashaba Moral Regeneration event. In 2016 they performed at the University of Limpopo and Tshwane University of Technology’s Fresher’s Ball festivals.
“We have had so many memorable experiences which is why we chose to highlight only a few. We are humbled at these opportunities and we are always willing to learn and grow. With that being said, we have really supportive families who have stood by us every step of the way by supporting us however we might need, be it financially, emotionally or socially. There aren’t words to thank them for what they do for us,” Medupi added.
Among the challenges they have encountered in the industry so far, the biggest has to be booking gigs when they were still unknown in the industry.
“Event promoters are difficult to convince but we told ourselves that we’ll let our work talk for us. It didn’t take long before we were slowly but surely getting bookings for shows. Our next hope is that government will realise our talent and help us secure bookings,” their manager, Matabo, added.
The group’s advice to aspiring choreographers and dancers is to “concentrate on your work and let it be your priority, the rest will follow. Don’t enter the industry expecting to get money and fame fast, focus more on mastering your work and building your brand. Avoid people who have a bad influence on you.”
They also offer workshops and classes every Saturday.
For more info or bookings, follow us on social media at Facebook: Divine Dance Crew SA, Twitter: @Team_DivineSA, Instagram: @divine_dancesa and WhatsApp or call 076 713 0167 or 081 376 6050. You can also send an e-mail to divinedance@mowedi.co.za.
