Mzansi Life & Style showcases the best that South Africa has to offer in terms of entertainment, fashion, lifestyle, culture, cuisine, travel, beauty and celebrity news. Subscribe to my website by adding your email address in the "follow" button below.
It’s been two years…two very long years…of lockdown, social distancing and disconnection from family and friends. Most of us have been altered in one way or another by COVID-19 protocols and lockdowns. Whether we have become more family-orientated, more anxious or more of a homebody, we have all been affected.
A survey conducted by Specsavers assessed what people have missed most during the lockdown period. Turns out, it’s the little things that matter the most. Of the respondents, 83% noted the freedoms of day-to-day life were most missed. However, the overriding theme was that people are longing for those everyday connections.
Connecting with people outside of our immediate family, extended family and work colleagues after two years of disconnection can be somewhat daunting. Many may feel a sense of anxiety when it comes to being around people again, even with COVID-19 protocols in place.
However, Society Cappuccinos is encouraging South Africans to take the plunge and initiate connecting with friends and loved ones again, whether in person, or over a phone call or video call, based on the fundamental belief that we really are better together. To bring people together, Society has launched a new Mochaccino which unites two things people love – coffee and chocolate.
Can you believe that it’s been almost 2 years to the day that I started working from home on 18 March 2020. We thought it would be just for 2 weeks, which became 2 months and now 2 years!
As more people start the transition back to working from an office or at least a hybrid of working from home and working from the office, so too has our borders opened to vaccinated travellers who wish to explore our beautiful South Africa.
South African Tourism have announced their new advertising campaign to entice tourists to “Mzansi” (a colloquial and informal term for South Africa) and hence the name of this website – Mzansi Life and Style 😊
Here’s some more information about SA Tourism’s new campaign and some insight from the advertising agency that conceptualized the concept called Joe Public United.
Joe Public United is thrilled to join forces with South African Tourism (SAT) on a new global campaign called “Live Again” which is set to reposition South Africa firmly in the hearts and minds of international travellers.
With its diverse landscapes, cultures and creative assets, South Africa offers global business and leisure travellers a host of experiences, as well as a strong science-based approach to managing COVID-19. In line with this, the campaign captures and highlights the South African spirit of endurance, resilience and “ubuntu” as it showcases bucket-list destinations, adventures and experiences.
“As we collectively begin to live again, after two years of the pandemic, South Africa is open for business to leisure and business travellers. This is what we wanted to bring to the fore,” says Xolisa Deyshana, Chief Creative Officer at Joe Public United.
Speaking at the launch, SA Tourism Acting Chief Executive Officer Mzilikazi Themba Khumalo echoed these sentiments saying, “The Live Again campaign captures the country’s brand promise to inspire new ways, as travellers enjoy unique leisure, cultural, business and events travel experiences that will re-energize body, mind and spirit.”
“This campaign sums up South Africa’s offer to international travellers to take the opportunity to be inspired by our beautiful country and recharged by our people and everything else that is uniquely South African. It taps into this country’s renowned optimism and resilience that has stood this nation in good stead at every turn. Through it all, we have never lost our spirit to overcome, and we are inviting the world to experience our country and recover from the COVID-19 situation in the same way. We are saying it’s time to ‘Live Again’.”
In challenging travellers to live again, the advertisement captures the spirit of a captivatingly beautiful landscape, dynamic culture and people, vibrant nightlife and exquisite cuisine. Its production also served as a ‘proof of the pudding’ sampling of the country’s tourism products, with over 170 crew staying for various periods in over 1000 rooms across the country.
“This campaign is special to Joe Public United because it has as its core message that South Africa is open is for business, the tourism sector is open for business and we are ready to welcome the world. The campaign resonates with our commitment to the growth of our clients and of our country. It is time for South Africa to reclaim its place in the international tourism space. It is time for our people and our country to shine, while we inspire the world,” says Mpume Ngobese, Co-Managing Director at Joe Public United.
“We are also honoured to have been part of producing South African Tourism’s first ever global audio-visual marketing campaign in five years and look forward to it inspiring travellers to visit South Africa,“ concludes Deyshana.
South Africa is open for business and looks forward to welcoming travellers and to witness the growth and transformation of the tourism sector.
Organisers of the highly anticipated entertainment and lifestyle gathering, announced the return of the 3rd annual Cotton Fest, which is set to take place in March 2022 in Newtown, Johannesburg. The theme for 2021 is “university and campus” and the organisers have created their very own university of COTTON FEST campus through which the festival will offer a multi-layered university campus experience including a concert, merch, cafeteria, sport area and even lockers for you to store your personal belongings.
With the return of the class of COTTON FEST 2019 and the sophomores from 2020, together with the freshers of 2022, it’s almost time for the graduation of the Class of 2022 at The University of COTTON FEST.
Known for merging both established and upcoming South African talent, COTTON FEST not only showcases the diversities in music while fusing the gaps within the different local current movements. With the best South African artists expected to perform over 3 stages, this action packed two-day festival returns to The Station in Newtown on the 19th & 20th March 2022. Celebrating all South African talent, Cotton Fest not only showcases the diversities in music at large, but it also celebrates various lifestyle elements within our ‘culture,’ including fashion and sport.
THE CONCERT: The COTTON STAGE will feature headline and legacy artists. The Bettr STAGE will feature the New Wave of young talent. The Jägermeister STAGE will bring the best nights featuring House and Electronic talent, alongside some of the biggest names on the Amapiano scene right now.
SPORTS AREA: A half-court will be set up for basketball fans, along with a skating ramp for skating enthusiasts.
FASHION: Various merchandise hubs will stock unique pieces, limited branded fashion items and other sought after accessories.
CAFETERIA: Food Court will bring you a huge variety of delectable options and several fully stocked bars positioned around the venue.
MORE: There’ll also be photo booths set up for content creation as well as various chill areas to relax, recharge and reboot.
“Following the past 20 months that we have all lived through, we are humbled to be back yet again to make an impact in the entertainment industry. With the huge support and backing from artists from around the country, we are ready to kickstart the road back to normality in a positive way, and get the Creator Economy going again” says founder Riky Rick. “ With the industry currently flipped on its head, Cotton Fest, together with exciting partners hope to bring together the industry, and celebrate the graduation of the first class from the University of Cotton Fest 2022.”
In line with current government regulations, tickets will be limited to 2000 per day.
To ensure the safety of everyone attending the festival, ALL festival attendees – including all staff, partners and performing artists – will need one of the following to gain access into the venue:
Provide a personal fully vaccinated certificate (either printed or online)
Provide a negative PCR test, if only vaccinated with one dose, done within 48 hours of the festival (either printed or online)
Do an on-site Rapid Antigen Covid Test if you have not yet been vaccinated, which is available for R150 at the venue.
Tickets are on sale at Webtickets and Pick ‘n Pay outlets nationwide. Options include:
R200 Early Bird
R250 Day Pass
R500 Weekend Pass
R600 Merch and day pass package
This year, the University of Cotton Fest 2022 is proud to be in collaboration with Bettr.app – Africa’s first digital banking app for creators, by creators — and supported by lifestyle giant, PUMA, iconic Elixir brand Jägermeister and global digital payments leader, Visa.
Synonymous with youth culture in SA, the festival will be powered by none other than the iconic South African youth radio station, YFM.
For more information, please follow these social media handles:
December is the best time to enjoy quality family time together. With its fun activities and abundance of adventure, Cresta makes it easy for shoppers to get their Christmas on, with their safe and innovative festive SEAson program. In addition, the first-class entertainment lineup is so impressive that shoppers will look for excuses to make multiple visits to the mall.
Cresta is a progressive mall with mixed-use spaces that bring together entertainment, leisure, health and wellness, and other novel experiences. The centre has created community spaces where people meet, socialise and build consciousness for the environment. With over 34 fish species, the CrestAquarium Fish Tank transports shoppers and especially children to a peaceful and magical space. Children learn about the importance of protecting the marine environment at the Under the Sea Marine Exploration Exhibition at Cresta, which provides a realistic experience with animatronic models where visitors feel they are on the Coast while exploring this exhibit. The exhibition reminds us of the beauty and majesty of marine life and our responsibility to protect it. Especially for inlanders to become more conscious of our impact and footprint, we teach children the importance of picking up after themselves and keeping our beaches clean and safe.
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is pleased to announce that the first South African Muslim film shot in Afrikaans, (actually AfriKaaps) Barakat, has been selected as South Africa’s official submission for the 94th Annual Academy Awards.
Directed by Amy Jephta and produced by Ephraim Gordon, co-founders of production companies PaperJet Films and Nagvlug Films, Barakat was released in cinemas in early 2021. The screenplay is by writing-producing team Amy Jephta and Ephraim Gordon who made their debut at South Africa’s 2017 kykNET Silwerskerm Festival with their short film Soldaat (Soldier), for which they won Best Screenplay and Best Short.
Barakat Official Trailer
Jephta, a celebrated theatre practitioner, director and writer, also scripted South Africa’s official 2018 Golden Globes submission for Foreign Film, Ellen: The Story of Ellen Pakkies. In 2019, she was awarded the Standard Bank Young Artist of the Year Award for theatre. Actor and director Gordon starred in Nosipho Dumisa’s critically acclaimed 2018 debut, Number 37, which premiered at South by Southwest (SXSW).
“I am so proud that this film has reached as many people as it has, and to be recognised by South Africa in this way is incredibly special,” said director Amy Jephta. “Even after an extremely challenging year for our film industry, we’re honoured that a small story about a family has connected us.”
Producer Ephraim Gordon added: “This was totally unexpected, but it shows that everyone’s hard work on this project has paid off. This film was a blessing from the beginning and continues to be. It is our barakat.”
‘Barakat’ is an Arabic word denoting blessings, abundance and prosperity. The film follows the trials and tribulations of Aisha Davids (played by veteran acress Vinette Ebrahim), a widow who has to preserve the peace between four sons struggling to come to terms with the death of their father two years after the fact. Her sons, Zunaid (Joey Rasdien), Zaid (Mortimer Williams), Yaseen (Keeno Lee Hector) and Nur (Danny Ross) return to their family home to celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr (or Labarang, as it’s called in Cape Town), the celebration marking the end of the month-long dawn-to-sunset fasting of Ramadan. They’ve never dealt with their father’s death or the void his passing has left. Each son’s unprocessed pain manifests in constant familial conflict, saddening their mother as she tries to move on with her own life.
The 94th Oscars® will be held on Sunday, the 27th March 2022.
Barakat was developed in partnership with MNET and funded in association with the NFVF, the DTIC, IDC as well as Indigenous Film Distribution, the South African distributor of the film.
Mzansi Life & Style by Mishkah Roman-Cassiem 