Catch the Golden Globes live on M-Net Movies Premiere this Monday

Awards season is just about ready to go. The Golden Globes kick things off this Sunday/ Monday (depending on where you are in the world). Also, the Oscar nominations will be revealed this coming Thursday at 5am local time. The announcement will be made by Gangster Squad star, Emma Stone and actor Seth MacFarlane. I’ll bring you more on that on Thursday.

As far as the Globes go, I’m going to attempt to stay up, as I’ve done before to catch it live, but for you normal beings, you can catch the repeat on M-Net on Monday evening at 20:30.

More details below:

Lady Gaga wows Johannesburg

Photo courtesy picture group

Last night I had the absolute privilege of seeing Lady Gaga live in concert and in South Africa for the first time. I was blown away to say the least. The design of the stage for one was just incredible. No detail was left out or unturned. The lighting, the props used, the way it rotated and in a sense morphed during the two hour or so show was fantastic. Her dancers and musicians on stage were on point too.

As for Mother Monster herself… Well, where do I begin? A lady, years five years ago was waiting tables in New York City to what we now know her as. This woman had a vision, a goal and she made it happen… And so big that she is now one of the biggest names in the world of music. And rightfully so after what I saw last night. Her wardrobe changes in accordance to the part of he show she is putting on – and let me tell you there were many wardrobe changes. They were all true to what we’ve become to expect from the star, funky, edgy and different. I’m blown away by how quickly she changes too. This show is perfection, a well-oiled machine indeed.

The fusion of music, art and of course Gaga’s creativity were exceptional. This is what a musical show should be like. Each part (or act) in the show had a story. There was dialogue, music (and lots of it), brilliant lighting and special effects. At two points (and there were probably more that I missed) but Gaga just stood there at the end of that given performance and stared at the crowd, it utter awe. She seemed shocked that people down at the bottom of the African continent had taken the time to buy tickets to her show, given up their Friday night to be there. Why? Well because she’s LADY GAGA!

Photo courtesy picture group

A few quotes that I loved from the night and excuse the language if you’re sensitive but here they are:

“I am you. We share the same home. The same dreams. The same potential to succeed. I am everything that you love in this world… I am in this world because of you”

She also asked people if they were working in the morning. When people put their hands up she said, “I don’t give a fuck if you have to work tomorrow. I want you to have the worst hangover in the morning. I would like you to get drunk and vomit on your friends” and with that everyone got up and danced their asses off. It was brilliant!! I even saw the seated patrons up in the stands up and at it.

My favourite songs included, Born This Way, Bad Romance, Telephone (amazing), Just Dance. Man who am I kidding? I dug them all. I think she’s also good in that she can read a crowd, so she knows when to come in and say something, interact with them.

Lady Gaga, I thank you. Absolutely amazing concert that I’m so stoked to have seen. I’ve been chatting to a friend on Twitter about a possible trip to Gaga’s home town of NYC to see her there in March. Let’s see how it goes A big thank you to Big Concerts, 5FM and M-Net for bringing the magic of the Born This Way Ball by Lady Gaga to South Africa.

Khaya wins Idols

Congratulations to 25-year-old Khaya Mthethwa. The Durban resident was named as the new South African Idol a couple of hours ago. It was pretty much a foregone conclusion that he would win, but I think it’s a great thing. He’s talented and the rumour has it, he is a super talented songwriter. So expect magic from Mr. Mthethwa. I’m going out on a limb here, but I’ll go as far as to say he might just be the most successful winner we’ve had to date. Speaking of winning, check out the list of prizes he walked away with:

- a recording contract with Universal Music South Africa

- R250 000 from Samsung, plus R50 000 worth of Samsung products including a LED TV, a printer, a laptop and a camera

- R48 000 airtime and 24 GIGS of data from Vodacom

- R250 000 cash from KFC

- a Ford Fiesta 1.6 Titanium

- a R30 000 fashion voucher from Truworths

- R50 000 voucher for musical equipment from Yamaha

- plus a Yamaha Waverunner VX700S jet-skit and trailer

- and a precision-crafted Shure UHF-R Premium wireless microphone system and a PSM®900 personal monitor system.

The show is done, but this is where it all really begins. I think it’s important to keep track of these artists after the competition, so I am going to do my bit in doing just that. Watch this space…

Idols Top 10

The Idols Top 10 was announced during last night’s live broadcast from the Soweto Theatre, which featured performances from Zahara, Zakes Bantwini and Arno Carstens. In case you missed it here are the Idols Top 10:

Chloe Kiley (24) from Cape Town
Dominic Neill (20) from Johannesburg
Khaya Mthethwa (25) from Durban
Melissa Allison (23) from Port Elizabeth
Monde Msutwana (30) from Pretoria
Nosipho Mngomezulu (22) from Shoshanguve
Obakeng Ramaboa (26) from Munsieville
Shekhinah “Sheki” Donnell (17) from Durban
Simphiwe Gwegwe (23) from Port Nolloth
Tshidi Tenyane (28) from Thokoza

I predicted that Dumi, Jean, Matt and Treasure would go but as for the rest, I had no idea who would stay and who would go. Needless to say I’m happy with this bunch of singers. I think South African voters got it right and I really do believe this is the strongest group we’ve had in a long time.

Related articles

• Idols SA – top 18 announced (jasonvonberg.wordpress.com)
• Jessica Sanchez’s big stage “Idol” homecoming (utsandiego.com)

Media Statement: MasterChef

This week’s South Africa’s first MasterChef was crowned. His name is Deena Naidoo. The 45-year-old was pretty stoked and emotional when the news was announced on Tuesday last week. His reaction was genuine and he seemed so grateful for the all the prizes that amounted to over R8million…. and then came the Citizen’s article on Friday. They claimed he wasn’t happy with the situation and how things had rolled out, particularly with the Mondovino restaurant prize. A classic case of being misquoted perhaps? Here’s an official statement from M-Net and Tsogo Sun:

RESPONSE TO ARTICLE IN CITIZEN NEWSPAPER

Friday, 27 July, 2012

 

M-Net and Tsogo Sun refute claims made by the Citizen newspaper today that MasterChef South Africa winner Deena Naidoo is disappointed with his prize package, and that he will not be getting his own restaurant. This is factually incorrect.

 

The total restaurant prize included (amongst other things) the full-time running and rebranding of the floor space. This arrangement was rent free, for two years. However, M-Net and Tsogo Sun structured the sponsorship to permit the MasterChef winner to choose between various options of participation in the restaurant, knowing that the winner might not be able to take up such a fantastic prize.

 

Deena elected a joint venture operation where he will share in the restaurant profits and partake in the rebranding and relaunch of the restaurant. This will run for two years. This decision was based on the fact that Deena, his wife and children are unable to relocate to Johannesburg at this time.

 

“I consider myself privileged and am extremely grateful to have won this prize. It is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” says Naidoo. “At no point have I ever been disappointed with the arrangement I have with M-Net and Tsogo Sun. In fact, they have been extremely accommodating and flexible and are allowing me the chance to run this restaurant whilst keeping my current job in Durban. Tsogo Sun appreciates that my family comes first. I couldn’t be more excited to embark on this journey with them.”

 

M-Net and Tsogo Sun explained the terms and options available to the Top 2 contestants while the series was still being filmed, and all parties were fully aware of what they would be entering into, should they win the prize, which consists of: R250 000 in cash, a brand new car, a trip to Italy and an Italian cooking course, a year’s free supply of wine and a sommelier course, as well as the Tsogo Sun restaurant opportunity.

 

Naidoo adds, “I never expected to have R8 million in my bank account and any reports that suggest this are simply untrue. I wanted to clear up the misconception that this might be the case, and in the process, it was asserted that I’ve been let down by M-Net and Tsogo Sun. This is inaccurate.”

 

Naidoo will embark on his restaurant adventure in November.

Linkin Park to tour SA this November

Look who’s coming to South Africa… It has been a long time coming, but finally rockers Linkin Park will grace us with their presence. The band will be heading down to South Africa this November to perform two stadium concerts. They’ll be rocking out on the 7th of November in the Mother City, followed by a performance in the Jozi on the 10th. Just looking at the ticket prices, which you will see below, they’re really reasonably priced and that is always a good thing.

There has been a lot of speculation about them, the Red Hot Chilli Peppers and the Foo Fighters. So far the speculation is right, in negotiations and not sure in that order. One thing’s for sure though, if the end of this year/ beginning of next year is anything to go by, best you start saving you cash because it’s going to be all kinds of awesome!

Full press release for the Linkin Park Tour is below:

 

LINKIN PARK

2 STADIUM SHOWS

SOUTH AFRICA 2012

Presented by Lucozade, 5fm and M-Net

Big Concerts announce that American rock band Linkin Park will perform two stadium shows live for the first time ever in South Africa on 7^th November at Cape Town Stadium and 10^th November at the Soccer City Complex, FNB Stadium, Johannesburg.  The tour is presented by Lucozade,  5FM and M-Net.

Tickets go on public sale for the Johannesburg performance on Thursday 26^th July and then for Cape Town on Friday 27^th July from Computicket.

Gareth Cliff’s arrest… sit down haters

So Idols judge and 5FM DJ Gareth Cliff was arrested last night. Twitter was abuzz following the news that the controversial but awesome star was arrested for speeding. He was caught doing 182km/h in a 120km zone.  That is one helluva speed granted and if anyone, anything was in his way, he/she/they/it would’ve come short, no doubt. He was taken into police custody, but contrary to several reports, he was released. He slept at home and didn’t have to worry about “papa wagging vir hom”.

Now obviously Gareth is a celebrity in this country, who has a massive following. He has people looking up to him and he needs to set an example. Granted – and fair enough. I don’t condone what Gareth did. Speed kills and with the road death figures being as high as they are, this isn’t a great example to set. Having said that, Gareth is by no means a stupid man. He’s very smart and he knows he did something wrong. He will, in my mind, take responsibility for his actions and then we can move on… well so many would think.

There is a small bunch of people who are sitting on their sanctimonious high horses judging him. If you ask me, they need to back off, shut up and sit down. Irrespective of whether you like Cliff or not, be objective in this situation. If you can honestly tell me you have never been caught speeding then fair enough, but I fail to believe that the majority of people reading this have never received a fine in the post. This has become a case of “aagh well I hate him, so this just gives me a reason to judge him and make others realise what an arsehole he is”. Bottom line is, he was wrong, he knows that. You don’t know him, so shut up and live your life, and not vicariously through his.

Sting heads to South Africa

Credit: Fabrizio Ferri

One of my favourite musicians of all time, Sting is heading to South Africa. Big Concerts in association with 94.7 Highveld Stereo, 94.5 KFM and M-Net will be bringing the legend to South Africa next March. This follows is hugely successful North American tour, Sting’s Back To Bass Tour, which marks his 25^th anniversary as a solo artist.

The gigs are as follows:

 

Johannesburg – presented by 94.7 Highveld Stereo and M-Net

Saturday 24^th March 2012

Sunday 25^th March 2012

Coca-Cola Dome, Johannesburg

Tickets from R345.00 (all inclusive)

 

Cape Town – presented by 94.5 KFM and M-Net

Tuesday 27^{th March}  2012

Wednesday 28^th March 2012

Grand Arena, GrandWest

Tickets from R395.00 (all inclusive)

Will you be South Africa’s first Masterchef?

After the resounding success of the hugely popular MasterChef Australia (and 32 other countries), the peops at M-Net have decided it is time to bring it to South Africa – and not they’re on the search to find the contestants who will be in the running to be South Africa’s first

M-Net’s Channel Head Pierre Cloete says that the entry process has been made as efficient as possible: “The MasterChef series has proven to be so popular around the world and with M-Net viewers that we expect a lot of interest in the show. As such, we’ve tried to keep the entry process for wannabe contestants as easy as possible. We have introduced a simple pre-entry mechanism. All that contestants need to do is fill out their entry forms as accurately as possible, and wait for our notification with more details about auditions. This will allow them a fast track through the registration process on their audition day. After that it’s purely down to the cooking!”

You can pre-enter online now until the 14^th of November by visiting www.mnet.co.za. Just follow the MasterChef links and you could be in the running. You can also enter by completing the entry forms in YOU, Huisgenoot or Drum magazines and follow.

MasterChef South Africa will be holding open auditions in Johannesburg, Durban and Cape Town this December at the following venues:

JOHANNESBURG: Saturday, 3 December at Monte Casino

CAPE TOWN: Saturday, 10 December at The Cullinan, Southern Sun Hotel

DURBAN: Saturday, 17 December at the Sun Coast Hotel and Casino

What will you be expected to do? You will be asked to prepare a cold dish, which will be tasted by a member of the MasterChef SA professional preliminary judging panel. There are certain requirements for the dish as stipulated below:

• One must bring all products in an insulated cooler to maintain the cold chain.
• Products not suitably chilled will result in the judges not tasting your dish; which could mean disqualification.
• One must transport all food products in plastic containers.
• Glass containers will not be allowed in the competition area.
• Present your dish on a plain white plate that you have brought with you.
• NO actual cooking is allowed; the dish must be a cold dish.
• All that is required of you is to plate the food on the dish and then present to the judges within the time limit given.

Contestants must also be able to make themselves available for possible callback auditions the following day.

 

A Special Night with Josh Groban this November

I’ve just come across this press release online. It has to do with singer-songwriter Josh Groban, who will be returning to South Africa this November. I would actually like to see him this time around, I missed his other tour so I’m going to diarise this. I’m sure many of you will too. Press release below:

Big Concerts are proud to present “A Special Evening with Josh Groban” at The Superbowl, Sun City, on 26th and 27th November and in Cape Town, at the Grand Arena, GrandWest, on 29th and 30th November 2011.  These spectacular events are presented in partnership with Talk Radio 702, 567 Cape Talk and M-Net.

Upon the conformation of his tour to South Africa Josh Groban commented, “It is a great joy for me to return to South Africa. It remains in my heart as a country that has inspired me in so many ways and to prepare for my return visit brings back a flood of wonderful memories. It has been many years but I can’t wait to give everything I have to my amazing, and patient fans!”