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TsekCorona! video release by the KaapKreools Collective with David Kramer, Emo Adams, Loukmaan Adams and various artists

As all South Africans are now in lockdown due to the Covid-19 virus pandemic, many festivals and shows have had to be postponed, including David Kramer’s KaapKreools, produced by the Cape Town Music Academy (CTMA), which was set to debut at the Suidooster Festival on 27 April. But the KaapKreools creators and cast decided the show must go on!

So, to help stuck at home Capetonians beat the corona blues, they have made an online video of a song that features in the show: “Welcome to Cape Town.”

Kramer gave the lyrics of the song a positive stay-at-home makeover and in collaboration with producers Vicky Davis and Schalk Joubert from the CTMA, created an entertaining, toe-tapping music video, featuring the KaapKreools musicians and a group of Cape Town’s favourite celebrities.

Watch the video for TsekCorona! below

Says Kramer about the initiative, “The late Taliep Petersen and I wrote ‘Welcome to Cape Town.’ The idea was to encourage visitors to Cape Town and promote the Cape Town ‘gees’. The song became a huge hit and remains popular.

But today, because of Covid-19, we have no visitors, everyone’s gone home, the streets are empty – the exact opposite of what the song celebrated. So that gave me an idea to rewrite the lyrics describing our current situation. I hope it will bring some joy and humour in these strange times.”

The #Tsekcorona! video was filmed on mobile phones. Apart from the KaapKreools cast, the video also features some of Cape Town’s best-known and favourite celebs, together with some local members of the public, who also sent in contributing video clips in support of fellow Capetonians and the initiative.

Viewers can do some serious star spotting in the video – local funnymen Marc Lottering, Louw Venter, Rob van Vuuren and Pietman Geldenhuys; actors Theodore Jantjies, Dean Smith, Nadia Valvekens, Ivan Zimmerman and Amalia Uys; RSG presenter Martelize Brink, as well as muso’s Donovan Copley, Frazer Barry, Babalwa Mentjies, Albert Frost, Nick Turner, Luna Paige and Ramon Alexander are all seen kicking up a storm as they film themselves dancing in isolation in and around their homes.

With many festivals and shows now postponed or cancelled, the entertainment industry is in crisis and many musicians are finding themselves out of work. Considering that KaapKreools was regarded as one of the Suidoosterfees highlights, the festival was keen to become involved with the #TsekCorona! initiative.

Suidooster Festival director Jana Hattingh brings a message of hope to despondent artists and audiences: “Festivals are complex systems with various people involved, of which artists, audiences and sponsors are the most important.

We thank our sponsors for planning a new, postponed festival with us. A big thank you to our artists for their innovative ideas – we will continue offering you a stage and explore ways to support you in bridging this unexpected disruption. And thank you to our audiences for continued support. Stay home and be safe so that we all can enjoy our festival together later in the year.”

Vicky Davis, co-producer of the video and programme manager of the CTMA, says that an initiative such as the video will go a long way.

“As an NPC creating performance opportunities for contemporary musicians in the Western Cape, we are deeply aware of the impact of Covid-19 on the arts. Just at the Suidooster Festival alone, we were set to produce eleven shows and events – a lot of jobs for many artists and crew. But with this initiative, with the support of the Suidooster Festival, we have decided to shift our focus to our online platforms to make a relevant, positive impact together with the artists we were going to collaborate with.”

Davis encouraged anyone interested in contributing or showing their support to musicians affected by Covid-19, to contact the CTMA directly.

“We are very happy with the final product and are proud for it to be played on radio along with other tracks produces in the traditional way,” says co-producer and bass player on the song, Schalk Joubert. “The wonderful thing about technology is that we don’t have to be limited during challenging times, we just need to stay adaptable – with limitation comes innovation.”

#TsekCorona! will launched on CTMA’s Youtube channel on Tuesday 7 April @ 09:00.

KaapKreools will be staged at the Suidooster Festival later this year. Keep an eye on the festival’s social media for announcements:

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For updates and more info, follow CTMA on social media:

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