Wunga from BIG FKN GUN on Vimeo

Wunga: Commonly consists of a concoction of anti-retroviral drugs, milk powder, rat poison, bicarbonate of soda and pool cleaner, and is usually laced with a cheap form of heroin. It is usually smoked with dagga or tobacco.

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Grant Payne, image: Dean Elliott

Hello, mynameisgrant. I am a 25-year-old South African-based photographer/creator. Born and bred in the 031, I call Durban home but now make my bed in Cape Town. My roots in photography lie deep in the streets. Black and white, shape and shadows… I am one of those shoot-first-ask-later kinda’ guys. I don’t often look for the beauty in things… but I try look for the truth. To me, a perfect image isn’t sharpness or pixel quality… it’s capturing that moment that will never present itself again. Always hunting, always looking… you never know what you’re going to see today.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
To find out more go to mynameisgrant.com. And for more information on ‘501® Interpretation’ click here!
 

GALLERY

Portrait by Dean Elliott

Rock The Boat has been designed specifically for over 18’s. The MSC Sinfonia luxury cruise ship, which is the largest cruise ship to ever service the South African market, has been chartered exclusively to host over 2000 lucky passengers of Rock The Boat. All the usual facilities and attractions of The MSC Sinfonia, which would be available to passengers on board any other cruise, will be available to the passengers of Rock The Boat – however Rock The Boat will also feature additional music highlights, entertainment, games, competitions and other attractions that would not ordinarily be included in a cruise. The exciting line-up of music, entertainment and other activities on Rock The Boat has been designed to appeal specifically to the passengers, who are travelling on The MSC Sinfonia exclusively for Rock The Boat.

1666 / London by goodluck

Everything I Do by liquideep

An incredible line-up of SA’s hottest DJ’s, bands, comedians and other entertainers have been booked to perform on Rock The Boat 2011. Each of these phenomenal artists will play multiple times per day over the 3 nights of Rock The Boat, in different areas throughout the ship, ensuring that all passengers have plenty opportunity to enjoy their performances! 2 hosts will be running all the games, competitions and other fun activities throughout the event.There will also be a comedy festival on-board, featuring some of SA’s most popular comedians, as well as models, fashion shows, gaming, a wide variety of sports activities, competitions with unbelievable prizes, the swimming pools, the jacuzzis, the gym, the casino, the beauty spa, duty free shopping…and plenty of other attractions on board!

Euphonik Ft. Lolo – Hiyo by euphonikdj

Diga Diga Dig Dig – DJ Dimplez by CEE.O2

The End Of The Road – Zebra and Giraffe by Southernpulse

Entertainment includes:

HedKandi (Ibiza), Crazy White Boy, Zebra and Giraffe, Liquideep, Locnville, Tear Gas, Goodluck, The Arrows, DJ Fresh, Euphonik, Dimplez, Milkshake, Erica Elle, Leo Large, Vanessa Holliday, DJ Cli, Jamie Faull –Saxophonist, Sterra on Percussion, David Newton, Conrad Koch, Tumi Morake, POPPY and Rob Vember.  The boat is 13 Storeys of Pure Party – 10 bars, 3 clubs, 4 restaurants, movies, swimming pools, spa and salons, sports, games, shopping, casino, sun deck and internet café.

Check out this onesmallseed video about one of the headliners – Locnville

The double ticket includes:

Your accommodation in the cabin (1 x outside 2 berth cabin R 14 000)

All meals onboard the ship, including: breakfasts, lunches, afternoon teas, dinners and midnight feasts!

All major entertainment, including:

◦ The Bands
◦ The DJ’s
◦ The Comedians
◦ The Movies
◦ The Games
◦ The Competitions
◦ The Clubs
◦ Free products (courtesy of Rock The Boat sponsors)
◦ The use of the gym, sports & fitness facilities.

A few points over & above the normal T&C’s

The judge’s decision is final.

The prize may not be transferred or converted to a cash prize.

Must be over 18 to go on Rock the Boat.

Must have a Valid SA Passport (no visa needed)

Winners will need to get to & from Durban (9th of December to 12 December)

This prize includes the cost of the cabin ONLY.

All port, baggage, insurance & Gratuity (R594 per person) will be for the winners account and will need to be paid to Launch Factory prior to receiving their ticket.

Any additional expenses are at your own cost.

COMPETITION DETAILS

All you have to do is answer the three following questions and send an e-mail with your answers to onesmallseed@gmail.com with the subject: Rock the Boat. Entries close November 14 – 1 PM  2011. Good luck!

1. Go to onesmallseed.com, read the interview with Andrew Mc Gibbon and answer the following question:

Where does he live?

 

2. Go to onesmallseed.tv and watch the “Discotheque in the clouds” video and answer the following question:

Which rock band did Blush and Bass included in their mash-up mix?

3. Go to onesmallseed.net and answer the following question:

Who won the Selected Creatives edition 5 competition?

To increase your chances of winning, you can also enter via Mxit on Quizmob (The quiz will start on 3 November) and by becoming a fan on one small seed’s mobi site – onesmallseed.mobi.  Strictly no under 18’s.

Durban has for too long been one of South Africa’s forgotten cities. Not anymore! Thanks to The 031 Collection Fashion Show initiative introduced by Mr Price, Durban has firmly rooted itself as the up and coming fashion capital of South Africa.

From stylish VIP’s, like supermodel Agyness Deyn who was one of the judges, to local fashionistas and Durbanites alike, The 031 Collection presented by Mr Price fashion show was the trendiest place to be with the fashion show finale.

The night saw eight of the country’s young designers together with South Africa’s most respected fashion designers including the likes of Ruff Tung, Nguni Shades, The Holmes Brothers, Francois Vedemme, Sibu Msimang, Terrence Bray, Amanda Laird Cherry and Leigh Schubert.

The Holmes Brothers had me smiling from start to finish of their insert – only in Durbs will a model with a surfboard warrant whoops and cheers – nice one boys. Francois Vedemme’s range was breath-taking – this man knows how to make a woman look longingly at a dress and WANT to find an event to wear it to! And Leigh Schubert impressed as always with pleats and tucks and figure flattering ensembles that would suit even the not-so-skinny.

The Durban design talent highlighted by Mr Price was astounding. Story boards ranged from futuristic 2020 Wall Street concepts, to designs based on the Book  of Eli. Not to mention a lot of rather tongue-in-cheek designs that was sent down the runway. Terrence Bray’s Brayve range had tongues wagging and imaginations running rampant – but that’s supposed to happen at a fashion show – right!?

The range that Agyness Deyn styled for Mr Price Fashion was great – lots of prints and bold accessories paired with staple wardrobe items that anyone could add their own personality to. Click here to check it out on the 031 Collection blog.

Mr Price chose to involve supermodel Agness Deyn as both a judge and stylist into their inaugural 031 Collection Fashion Show, due to her massive impact on fashion both on and off the catwalk. Her involvement in the project definitely raised the bar, and made a big impact on Durban’s up and coming young designers.

The winner of the Mr Price New Designer category was Cindy Armstrong who hails from Howick and designed a range based on the Book of Eli, with a very nomadic feel.  “Think end of world, think desolation. I am lost for words and amazed and so proud of my range!” Cindy says.

Armstrong wins R20 000 in cash prizes and an internship with Mr Price. The high profile judges included Lucilla Booyzen of SA Fashion Week, local Blogger Milisuthando Bongela, Designer Leigh Schubert, Mr Price Trend Executive Joanne Coelho and Agyness Deyn from the UK.

All in all, a well produced event… No longer will Durban be the forgotten city!

Courtesy of: “The Socialite.co.za. Your VIP Access to SA Fashion Lifestyle and Entertainment”

one small seed made it to RAMFest 2011 in Cape Town, but barely made it out alive! Check out the footage to see what went down at South Africa’s only REAL Alternative Music festival.

RAMfest – The Cape’s Ultimate Rock Festival – spanned 3 venues this year for the first time, bringing Real Alternative Music (spells RAM, get it?) to South Africa’s metropoles. The main 3-day fest was held once again in the Cape, at the idyllic Nekkies Resort in Worcester, also home to  hippie-fests like Earth Dance. Following that, two more day-long festivals were held at the Wavehouse in Umhlanga in KZN and at Riversands Farm in Fourways in Jozi (who knew there were farms in Johannesburg!).

RAMfest 5 brought music fans more genres to enjoy than ever before, a bigger dancefloor, and hosted three equally awesome stages. There was the main carnivalesque rock stage, a grungy tented metal stage by Metal4Africa and the glowing Electronic Pyramid by Griet Events & Artist Management – all back to back with killer tracks.

The main stage hosted two international headliners: Welsh rock band Funeral for a Friend and American punk rockers Alkaline Trio… who, to be perfectly honest, were a load of shite if you’re not a 12-year-old boy.

But with the host of amazing South African acts to pick from, no one really minded the well-timed beer breaks. Without a doubt, the South African stars on the lineup stole the show, as RAMfest fans witnessed stellar worldclass performances by bands like Die Antwoord, Van Coke Kartel (below), Gazelle, Zebra & Giraffe and more

One of my personal highlights of the festival was a very warmly welcomed return of Pretoria band Not My Dog.

Just prior to RAMfset in early March, Not My Dog reunited with their original vocalist, Hanu de Jong of The Narrow, and have graced the stage together for the first time in around ten years, bringing back their notorious brand of hard rock that South Africans back in the day grew to love. Back when ‘Toxicity’ was at number one, a Black Label cost R5 and you painted your nails black… Well, I did anyway.

Back to RAMfest, Hanu and the gang put on an epic show, and if you happened to miss them, make sure you check them out out and about on their month-or-so-long SA tour.

Other big names on the main stage that can’t not be mentioned were the angel-voiced (and faced, come to think of it) Isochronous, indie band Desmond and the Tutus, the awe-inspiring, internationally acclaimed Blk Jks, Cape Town kids Ashtray Electric, Tumi (of the Volume), Sowetan rockers Ree-Burth (one of whom I got a nice little snap of below) and Cape Town electronic act Mix N Blend.

Artists on the metal stage included Sabretooth, The Dead Will Tell, Enmity, Mind Assault, Contrast The Water, Knave, Haggis & Bong and Juggernaught.

Think electric saws, Slipknot t-shirts, loads of sweaty, greasy headbanging and that move the kids call ‘the windmill’.

Down at the electronic stage were French act Tom Deluxx plus South African favourites Haezer, B-Team, Double Adapter, Niskerone, Toby2Shoes, Jam Jarr, P.H.Fat, Counterstrike, FunaFuji, Sedge Warbler and more. See the pic below for why it was called The Electronic Pyramid.

In addition to the great lineup, festivalgoers had fun in the sun in the river, splashing in the pool, browsing through the market, jamming in the Mercury tent, chilling at the cocktail bar and beer garden, and tripping mildly on space cookies. Plus there was a host of live entertainment in the form of fire spinners, dancers, stilt-walkers and half-naked performance artists all dressed to fit the festival’s really well-designed carnival branding.

(Carnival meets Chinese circus more like it – I’m pretty sure I even saw a fire dragon. If you think I was tripping, see below.)

(That’s totally a fire dragon.)

One thing is for sure, RAMfest5 really outdid itself, bringing South Africans a truly first-rate rock fest. For those who made it out alive, who knows what next year’s festival will hold?

He is responsible for the faces on the walls at Marvel, Mama Africa, the ever-changing artwork at Rafiki’s and even Caprice (which has now been painted over). “I live for the moment, that’s why it doesn’t bother me if one of the pieces gets painted over – I prefer it that way”, he says. Buffy lived on the streets for years, a result of dodging the army. He was addicted to heroin for 8 years, was a prostitute and scavenged for food and bits of paper to draw on. Down and out in Jo’burg, Durban, PE, Knysna and Cape Town his story sounds like the London pavement scribers in a George Orwell novel. When he finally handed himself in after years on the run, the police didn’t have a clue who he was.

“It was a girlfriend who got me off the streets. She used to pay me R50 to fuck her but then she got arrested for hijacking a SAB truck and killing the driver in Khayelitsha.” Mama Africa helped him get off the junk in what he refers to as a schizophrenic time of his life.

It’s clear he loves women, I mean he really loves women – and they seem to have a soft spot for him too. While we’re doing the interview one of the waitresses hovers around – “I was with her this weekend” he nods, “my bed is on this platform and it broke so she came crashing through it” he laughs. “Women are number one, I always paint people I know, mainly women, some guys like tits, ass, boobs – I look at the pussy. I used to work on this mural outside Pickwicks and there was this beautiful German girl working there, I wanted to paint her so I used to run down, look at her and then run up again to finish the picture” After a mural is done he would lead the girl to it and show her the painting, which according to him would always impress them. “Is that the only reason you do it?” I ask. “No, but it’s a great way in” he replies with a smile.

Buffy sees his work as graff, even though he paints with a brush. He says he hates that graffiti artists have this elitist view that you have to use a spraycan. “No matter how you do it, just get it on the wall is my view”, he says. He’s a self-proclaimed undercover masochist. He has the Celtic horn god Cernunnos tattooed on his stomach. I ask him about these tribal influences, which feel present in all his paintings. “It’s all Celtic, it’s my roots” he replies, “my real name means patriarch, male domination”. Where does Buffy come from? I wanted to know. “That’s also a name that’s been with me from birth, my mother used to listen to this singer called Buffy Sainte-Marie, a Native American who used to sing Welsh ballads. If I was born a girl, my name would have been Buffy”.

I ask him whether he likes the Native American Spur murals. He looks at me incredulously but then replies with a smile: “I would find an engineer and ask him whether or not he is a vegetarian. If he says no I’ll ask him to build a cannon that can fit an elephant. I would load the elephant in the cannon and shoot it at the Spur mural”. “Isn’t that a bit violent?” I wanted to know. ‘Violence’ being another theme that comes to the fore in some of his paintings.

There is room for violence in society but people are afraid of it. When you live in the moment like me, it comes with violence, you can’t think of the outcome or how it will affect people because then you’re not truly living the moment. I love life but I don’t believe in karma, it ruins your day.

Read the rest of issue 05

Click here to view our #flashBack selection for September.

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