Enterprising Mafitlhakgosi off to China
Chippa Legodimo | Thursday October 23, 2014 15:15
The enterprising group will be off to China to stage two shows before returning on November 1, 2014.
The group’s coordinator, Joseph Ikopeng, is elated that the group will be performing there.
“This is a big opportunity for us. It shows our growth and confidence people are now showing in us. We are going there to show the Asians what we are made of. We should market both our culture and ourselves as a group,” he told Arts & Culture.
The trip is courtesy of diamond giant, De Beers, who have been engaging the Old Naledi-based group in their local events.
“De Beers is marketing diamonds to some Chinese companies and we are happy that once again they feel we are the best group to help them achieve their goals. We shall not disappoint. Batswana know how good we are and we can only improve on what we have been giving to local audiences,” Ikopeng said.
Mafitlhakgosi were formed in 2009 by a group of young people who wanted to use music and art to address the problem of juvenile delinquency.
They have steadily grown into a formidable force on the local arts and entertainment front. Combining music and dance with theatrics, the group has, especially in the most recent past, charmed the masses to rally behind it. They have performed at many high profile events including the recent Independence Day celebrations at the National Stadium where they wowed the capacity crowd.
Their young performer, Tshiamo Ikopeng, who refers to himself as ‘Young Bera’, pulled some funny stunts as he majestically walked around the pitch boasting how he could easily imitate legendary Ratsie Setlhako, much to the delight of the audience.
The group has also demonstrated their versatility by fusing into their performances other genres such as kwaito and hip-hop.
“When we started we knew what other local groups were doing and we set out to do something different. We decided that we would use old tins, which many see as dirt for our instrumentation. We also fuse in other genres because we have talented individuals who can easily change styles,” he said. Young Bera was a marvel to watch on Independence Day when he imitated rapper ATI, prompting the crowd into huge laughter and cheers.
The primary school pupil is fast becoming a celebrated performer with his confidence and charisma.
While they keep on ascending the entertainment ladder many have been left wondering why up to now the group has not released an album or DVD.
Ikopeng explained that while they have considered recording one, they were not making a DVD because they want to keep their fans on the edge.
“We want people to keep on coming to our shows and request for more performances. Once the DVD is out we would not get the big audiences we currently enjoy because people would just watch at home. This is deliberate,” he said.