SABC 1 will air Tropika Island of Treasure season 5

Despite this morning’s tragic events, SABC1 has decided to go ahead with the new season of Tropika Island of Treasure. The show stars a whole host of South African celebrities including the late Reeva Steenkamp, who was shot dead allegedly at the hands of her boyfriend Oscar Pistorius.

Below is a statement from Vukile Madlala, who is the Publicity Manager for the channel:

SABC1 STATEMENT ON REEVA STEENKAMP

Johannesburg, Thursday 14 February, 2013

“As SABC1; we are deeply saddened by the tragic turn of events involving one of the players on our show, Tropika Island of Treasure Season 5. Our thoughts and prayers during these trying times are with the family and friends of the dearly departed Reeva Steenkamp. Tropika Island of Treasure is scheduled to start airing on SABC1 Mzansi Fo Sho this Saturday 16 February 2013, at 18h30.”

It’s a tricky situation because the show was filmed in Jamaica last year and nobody could have ever predicted this. So the money, production costs and TV scheduling time had all been finalised prior to this horrendous incident. It will no doubt be extremely hard for Steenkamp’s close friends and family to see her in the show for as long as she was in it.

My deepest condolences go out to her loved ones during this time. More on this story to follow.

 

Mariah set to earn $18million on Idol

From one diva to another: Mariah Carey is the new American Idol judge. The 42-year-old was confirmed as the new judge following the departures of Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler earlier this month. The diva is said to have scored herself a whopping $18million for her duties on the judging panel. How shit for her? Haha.

On the news Mimi said, “I am so excited to be joining ‘Idol. I can’t wait to get started in the fall and I will see you in January.”

No word on who the third judge will be as yet, but now that word is out about Mariah you can expect the speculation to start on the third judge.

Now when Jennifer “JLo” Lopez joined the judging panel two seasons ago I was a bit weary and truth be told I wasn’t sold. Needless to say she grew on me to a point that she actually landed up being my favourite judge. She was fierce, firm but also very constructive and I think this helped the contestants immensely. Will Mariah follow in JLo’s footsteps? Well that we’re going to have to wait until January for. Warning though. EXPECT A LOT OF MARIAH SONGS IN THE AUDITION PHASE… Obviously many hopefuls will try and wow the star with their versions of her songs, but it’s going to get ugly. Just you wait and see

So in the spirit of Mariah joining American Idol, I thought why not include one of her biggest tracks… We Belong Together, her song for Randy and Ryan? Haha

Related articles

• Nick Cannon — ‘American Idol’ Can’t Afford Mariah Carey! (tmz.com)
• Mariah Carey – Nick Cannon: ‘i Won’t Let Mariah Do Idol For Less Than $100 Million’ (contactmusic.com)
• ‘Idol’ Judges Panel Shake Up: Mariah In, Randy Out? (huffingtonpost.com)
• Randy Jackson Will Always Love Steven Tyler and Jennifer Lopez (thehollywoodgossip.com)

Dineo’s Diary: My thoughts

Last night yet another reality TV show launched on South African TV. I must admit I’m getting a little over reality TV. It’s like a rash… it be everywhere and most people believe they can have a reality show now. Snore. Having said that, when I first heard about this one, I knew something would be different. Dineo Ranaka is a mother, first and foremost. She’s also a well known television personality, a former radio host, a fashion designer and a mogul in the making – and that is the premise of the show. It’s called Dineo’s Diary: Mogul in the making. The show documents her life as it stands and how she aims to become an entertainment mogul in Africa.

Now for someone who aspires for more, who strives for greatness, immediately I was drawn to this show. While I’m nowhere near this scale of success as yet, it will come and watching the show last night, it just reaffirmed that for me. Dineo is incredible. She is beautiful, she is damn smart and driven. Unlike other reality shows we’ve seen in the past, there is no bullshit here. She says it like it is, she wears her heart on her sleeve and if she’s going to do a reality TV show, she’s going to give you the reality of it all. So she’s doing a photoshoot, she’s meeting her business partners, she’s arguing with her boyfriend (like normal human beings), she’s busy being a mom and a daughter… and that was just in episode one. The season promo aired shortly afterwards and it just looks fantastic.

Check out the promo:

From a production point of view it was shot fantastically. The treatment was carefully thought out, the style of the show is great and it just looks slick. He’s knows this, but I’ll say it publicly. Director Graeme Swanepoel of New Vision Pictures is on top form. He’s knows how to make great reality TV shows in SA. He has Cream Cartel, Running with the Reps, Dineo’s Diary under his belt and a few other projects in the pipeline so watch out for his name.

If you want to catch Dineo’s Diary, be sure to watch it every Wednesday at 19:30 on Vuzu, channel 123 on DStv. Oh and you’ll get to see her gorgeous little boy too. He’s too cute for words!

Countdown to Katy Perry: Part Of Me 3D

Next week Katy Perry makes her movie debut. It’s called Katy Perry: Part Of Me 3D and its set to be one of the big blockbusters of 2012. Will it live up to everyone’s expectations? Well with 75million records sold worldwide, there is no doubt in my mind that she will hit number one. In the film we get to see more than just what we see on stage. We get to see Katy as a young blonde girl. We get to see her rise to fame and of course we get to see and hear more about her marriage and subsequent divorce to Russel Brand.

There are two things I’d like to raise here. One is this, I watched this report by ABC News and I thoroughly enjoyed it. This is the sort of media work I intend on doing as I progress in this industry. It’s fun, but it’s cleverly crafted and well produced. Nice work ABC News. Secondly I like this trend of singers making films about their lives and their rise to fame. The other day there was literally nothing to watch on TV except Justin Bieber‘s Never Say Never film. While I’m not his demographic and therefore not such a fan, I’ve always respected the star. I reluctantly settled in to watch the film and after ten minutes I was hooked. It’s incredible to see how far he has come, how long his journey to becoming the Bieber we know him to be was (despite his age) and how talented he really is. I feel we’re going to see something very similar with Katy Perry.

As for love, does she still believe in it? “Of course. I’m going to let love lead the way and I think I will stick to it. So yes.” Love you Katy

Katy Perry: Part Of Me 3D releases in South African cinemas on the 7th of September.

Related articles

• Katy Perry releases movie poster (jasonvonberg.wordpress.com)
• Katy Perry Thanks Twitter Fans With Part Of Me 3D Advanced Screenings! (perezhilton.com)
• Katy Perry Planning Special Performance For ‘Part Of Me’ Premiere (mtv.com)

Nandos reacts to the Isidingo set fire

Ouch Nandos! They had nothing to do with the fire at the SABC this morning, but what would a news story like this be without Nandos huh? Personally I think Cherel De Villiers started the fire… you know that conniving bitch, always in it for herself and with an agenda

On a serious note, I hope the matter is resolved soon. Isidingo is an institution and one of SA’s most loved soaps. Hopefully the insurance will pay out quickly and filming on a new set can resume shortly!

Related articles

• Nandos is at it again (jasonvonberg.wordpress.com)
• Nandos responds (jasonvonberg.wordpress.com)

American Idol – Phillip vs Jessica

The 11th season of the hugely popular reality show, American Idol is drawing to a close. The two-part finale is set to take place at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles tonight and tomorrow night with 16-year-old Jessica Sanchez taking on Phillip Phillips in the finale. The two will have to bring more than just their A-games tonight, as their final performances will be judged by none other than the voters at home.

If we look at the last few years, Phillip has more of an advantage over Jessica in that the voting demographic is largely a female teenage audience, but stranger things have happened. You’ll recall Sanchez was voted out during the top 10, but the judges decided without any hesitation to use their one save on her. She then went on to wow not just the judges week after week, but also the viewers at home. So at this point it’s anyone’s to win.

I like Phillip and I think he is set either way, but I just feel like it is time for a female winner again and there isn’t anyone better than Sanchez. This young lady has huge pipes and a very bright future ahead of her. Weigh in. Who do you think will win?

 

<center></center>

I’m going to be up again, tweeting and blogging so do join me!

It’s SAMA week

One week to go until the annual South African Music Awards takes place. The awards are back at their rightful home of Sun City this year and it’s going to be epic! I’ll be heading through on Sunday for the first night of awards. These will be for the technical and non-televised awards. While these winners wont be on your TV screens, they still deserve a shout out for the work they have contributed to the music industry in the past year, so I will be bringing you all that news.

As far as the Monday night, live broadcast goes things are still very under wraps. We don’t know who the hosts will be (Bonang and Trevor Gumbi would be my first choice) and who will be performing, but I’m pretty sure we can expect the likes of Zahara, Zakwe, MiCasa among others to take to the stage. There will be a big fashion show at Sun City too and obviously there will be loads of other news coming out of SA’s big musical night, so stay tuned. For now, check out my interview with Lira about her nominations:

More interviews to follow this week.

The countdown to Idols is on

Today I find myself at the Sun City complex out in the North West Province. The reason for my visit it to catch a glimpse of this year’s talent in the hit singing show Idols.  The field has been narrowed down from thousands of hopefuls to just a handful today and while I wont be able to share too much of what happens until you all see it on TV, I’m sure I can sneak a few pics of the judges and possibly some of the hopefuls who are in the running to be the new Idol.

This year I’m hoping to see a lot more soulful singers and I’ll put it out there, I think it’s time we have a female winner again. The boy’s club is cool and they’ve all done well in their respective days since Idols, but it’s time for a lady to win I feel. Look it’s based on votes and may the best person win, but this is just what I’m hoping will transpire. I’ve heard a few murmurs since I’ve been here of some of the interesting personalities you’ll get to see in this season… and I don’t mean the contestants or the judges, I mean a few TV personalities who you will love. Stay tuned, more to follow…

UPDATE:

The contestants I saw performing yesterday were great. They’re a very soulful bunch this year and I’m glad to see that. I don’t know who went through though, I guess we’ll just have to wait and see when the show airs on M-Net and Mzansi Magic this June. What I can say is that there are a few familiar faces (seasons gone by) that are there. If you watched another reality show a few years back on M-Net, you might recognise two of the young ladies too. There’s a soccer player turned singer who will get a lot of ladies voting no doubt and then there are a few other interesting characters too. It’s going to be a great season no doubt!

Watch: Oprah interviews Bobbi Kristina

It has been a month since Whitney Houston’s sudden passing. If anyone has lost someone dear to you, you’ll know that a month on things still don’t feel real and that fact that that person is no longer with us is still hard to comprehend. The constant flow of visitors to your home slows down, the phonecalls and messages aren’t as frequent. You’re slowly but surely starting to feel that loss, but also that you need to start moving forward. Now taking this into account, I really take my hat off to Whitney’s only daughter, Bobbi Kristina.

Daughtry interviews Daughtry

The Daughtry band have just released their new album called “Break The Spell”. The first single off that record is called Crawling Back To You, which is currently on high rotation on most radio stations. Great tune and I can’t wait to hear the rest of the album. In this clip above, you’ll see how Daughtry (the man) interviews Daughtry (the band). He does pretty well as a journalist, reporter don’t you think? While he’s pretty strong, I do think he should stick to music, cause that’s what we love