Freshlyground

Infobox musical artist
Name = Freshlyground


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Background = group_or_band
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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 African Afro-fusion band that was formed in Cape Town in 2002. The band members are from South Africa, Mozambique and Zimbabwe. Stylistically, Freshlyground incorporates elements of traditional South African music (such as kwela and African folk), blues and jazz, as well as features of indie rock. The lead singer is Zolani Mahola whose distinctive voice contributes much to the band's unique sound.

Band members

*Zolani Mahola – Lead vocals
*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 the Robben Island African Festival.

"Nomvula" (2004-2006)

Early in 2004, Freshlyground participated in the opening of Parliament of South Africa by performing before President Thabo Mbeki in an event organised as a celebration of ten years of democracy in South Africa.

At the Harare International Festival of the Arts, Freshlyground performed with Zimbabwean musician Oliver 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 and Femi Kuti at the North Sea Jazz Festival, held during April in Cape 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 in Rome, 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 the 5FM 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 in Cape 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 the United Kingdom during June and July before moving onto Germany and Belgium 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 in The Netherlands, Germany, United Kingdom, France and Italy.

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 in South Africa. The band performed at the ceremony, which was held during closing of the last World Cup in Germany.

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 and Germany 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 on 2 November 2006 at the annual MTV Europe Music Awards, which were held in Copenhagen, Denmark. This made them the first South African musical act to ever be awarded an MTV 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) (2^nd single)
* 7. "Doo Be Doo" (5:14) (1^st single)
* 8. "Things Have Changed" (4:17) (3^rd single)
* 9. "Buttercup" (5:37) (4^th 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" (1^st 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