- Freshlyground
Infobox musical artist
Name = Freshlyground
Img_capt = Freshlygrounddeletable image-caption
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Background = group_or_band
Alias =
Origin =Cape Town ,South Africa
Genre =Folk Afropop Jazz Indie rock
Years_active = 2002 – present
Label = Sony BMG Africa Freeground Records
Associated_acts =
URL = [http://www.freshlyground.com/ www.freshlyground.com]
Current_members =Zolani Mahola Simon Attwell Peter Cohen Kyla Rose Smith Julio Sigauque Josh Hawks Aron Turest-Swartz
Past_members =
Notable_instruments =Freshlyground is a
South Africa nAfro-fusion band that was formed inCape Town in 2002. The band members are fromSouth Africa ,Mozambique andZimbabwe . Stylistically, Freshlyground incorporates elements of traditional South African music (such askwela and African folk),blues andjazz , as well as features ofindie rock . The lead singer isZolani Mahola whose distinctive voice contributes much to the band's unique sound.Band members
*
Zolani Mahola – Leadvocals
*Simon Attwell –Flute ,Mbira ,Harmonica
*Peter Cohen – Drums
*Kyla Rose Smith –Violin ,Vocals
*Julio "Gugs" Sigauque – Acoustic Guitar
*Josh Hawks –Bass Guitar ,Vocals
*Aron Turest-Swartz – Keyboards,Percussion ,Vocals History
"Jika Jika" (2003)
Freshlyground launched their debut album, "Jika Jika", in early 2003. The great success of this album ultimately kick-started their career and re-affirmed their reputation as a fresh and vibrant young face in South African music. The much-needed exposure from the album resulted in an invitation for the band to perform at both the
Harare International Festival of the Arts and theRobben Island African Festival."Nomvula" (2004-2006)
Early in 2004, Freshlyground participated in the opening of
Parliament of South Africa by performing before PresidentThabo Mbeki in an event organised as a celebration of ten years ofdemocracy inSouth Africa .At the
Harare International Festival of the Arts, Freshlyground performed withZimbabwe an musicianOliver Mtukudzi , who is also renowned for his diverse blending of different African music genres.The band went on to perform alongside local legends
Miriam Makeba ,Stanley Clarke andFemi Kuti at the North Sea Jazz Festival, held during April inCape Town . July also marked a break from the recording studio for the band, who had been working hard on their then unreleased album "Nomvula". The band took this time to perform at the Villa Celimontana Festival inRome ,Italy .Finally, in late 2004, Freshlyground released their very successful album, "Nomvula". Although the uptake of the album was initially slow, it eventually went on to achieve double
platinum status locally. Initial success was largely due to the catchy, feel-good, lyrics of "Doo Be Doo", which enjoyed significant play on local radio. Follow-up hits included "I'd like" and the signature track "Nomvula", the former achieving unprecedented success on radio charts such as the5FM Top 40, where it remained at No. 1 for several weeks. [cite web|url=http://www.5fm.co.za/music/MusicChartsDetails.aspx?id=1|title=5FM Top 40 Chart|accessdate=March|accessyear=2006]Ma' Cheri (2007-present)
Freshlyground's latest album "Ma' Cheri" was released on
September 3 , 2007. The album again was produced by JB Arthur and Victor Masondo, and was recorded inCape Town . The first single is called "Potbelly" followed by "Fired Up" and "Desire".Current events
Tours (2006)
Freshlyground completed a national tour in May, with their performance at
Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden (Cape Town ) being one of the most notable events. They will be performing at various venues in theUnited Kingdom during June and July before moving ontoGermany andBelgium in August. [cite web|url=http://www.freshlyground.com/|title=Freshlyground Gigs|accessdate=July|accessyear=2006] After a short break in this tour, they will come back to Europe in September for performances inThe Netherlands ,Germany ,United Kingdom ,France andItaly .World Cup handover
In July 2006, Freshlyground took part in the official handing over ceremony for the
2010 FIFA World Cup [cite web|url=http://www.news24.com/News24/Entertainment/Local/0,6119,2-1225-1242_1959219,00.html|title=News24 Article on 2010 handover|accessdate=July|accessyear=2006] , due to take place inSouth Africa . The band performed at the ceremony, which was held during closing of the last World Cup inGermany .Plans
International markets
The band has announced their intentions to secure releases internationally due to increased interest in the US and Europe; To this end they have recently signed a deal with Sony BMG Africa to facilitate better distribution of future releases. Currently, their second album ("Nomvula"), is expected to be distributed to the
United Kingdom ,France ,Italy andGermany by August 2006.Awards
South African Music Awards
In 2005, Freshlyground was nominated for three awards at the South African Music Awards. However, they failed to win any of these titles, losing out to other popular artists such as Zola and
Simphiwe Dana .In 2008 Freshlyground won four SAMA (South African Music Award)awards:'Album Of The Year','Duo / Group', 'Engineer' and 'Adult Contemporary Album: English'.
MTV Europe Music AwardsFreshlyground has been awarded
Best African Act on2 November 2006 at the annualMTV Europe Music Awards , which were held inCopenhagen ,Denmark . This made them the first South African musical act to ever be awarded anMTV award.Channel O Music Video Awards : in 2008 the group won Best Southern Africa category [Museke: [http://museke.com/node/2243 Channel O Music Video Awards 2008 winners] ]Discography
Jika Jika (2003)
* 1. "Train Love" (4:12)
* 2. "Ocean Floor" (3:15)
* 3. "Rain" (5:07)
* 4. "Castles In The Sky" (3:20)
* 5. "Feels Like Sunday" (3:40)
* 6. "Mbira No. 2" (2:18)
* 7. "Zipho Phezulu" (3:06)
* 8. "Mali" (4:07)
* 9. "Castles In The Sky" (3:36)
* 10. "Mowbray Kaap" (6:04)
* 11. "Nomvula" (7:27)Nomvula (2004)
* 1. "I am the man" (4:57)
* 2. "Nomvula" (4:46)
* 3. "Manyana" (5:13)
* 4. "Vanish" (5:20)
* 5. "Zithande" (4:40)
* 6. "I'd like" (6:25) (2nd single)
* 7. "Doo Be Doo" (5:14) (1st single)
* 8. "Things Have Changed" (4:17) (3rd single)
* 9. "Buttercup" (5:37) (4th single)
* 10. "Human Angels" (6:25)
* 11. "Father Please" (4:03)
* 12. "Mowbray Kaap" (6:03)
* 13. "Touch In The Night" (2:44)
* 14. "Doo Be Doo (Remix)" (European Bonus Track)Ma' Cheri (2007)
* 1. "Ma' Cheri"
* 2. "Desire"
* 3. "Pot Belly" (1st single)
* 4. "Ask Me"
* 5. "Baby Tonight"
* 6. "Fired Up"
* 7. "Go Gorilla"
* 8. "Arms of Steel"
* 9. "Pink Confetti"
* 10. "Zulu Lounge"
* 11. "Ivana"
* 12. "uMalume"
* 13. "Crimeson Smile"
* 14. "Manikiniki"
* 15. Bonus Track: "Air Hostess"External links
* [http://www.freshlyground.com/ Freshlyground.com]
* [http://www.freshlyground.nl/ Freshlyground.nl]
* [http://www.freshlyground.de/ Freshlyground.de]References
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