Blogging @ joziewood.com

Hi all

Apologies for not uploading anything in ages. My focus has been on my company - Joziewood Films. We've just rebuilt the website and it includes a built in blog where I'm spending most of my blogging time. please visit the website and have a look. USOYA will continue soon, but for now it's all about Joziewood baby.

Teeto

This is Teeto, a rapper from Lagos, Nigeria. He grew up with 12 siblings, went to a federal government school and finished a university education in Lagos. Right now he co. owns Freshboy entertainment, a music production co. and focuses on the rapping side of things.

His advice to people trying to get into his industry, “go to school and have a backup plan, if you cant go to school, get ready to adapt, it’s not an easy road”. That said, if you’ve made a start for yourself and think you're good enough to start recording, try and mail freshboy.entertainment@gmail.com, see if you can make a deal. So what’s Teeto saying say on African Politics...?

Senter, Teeto’s manager and partner of Freshboy entertainment, shot the interview with a cell phone and mailed me the footage, shot guys. It’s that easy to get content from across the continent. Anyone out there who’s interested in being spotlighted and think they’re the ish, please send me a mail and we’ll figure out the easiest way to get you uploaded. Lastly here’s the man with a poem on Africa...

Kgomotso Matsunyane

Kgomotso Matsunyane – producer, writer, talk show host and partner of T.O.M Pictures. Born and raised in Zone 9 Meadowlands, Soweto, Kgomotso first attended boarding school in Botswana, then went to college in the U.S.. She is easily the most talkative person in Africa, hence her talk show, but less text from me and more video from her…

OK, so despite this s*#ty recession and our current state of affairs, Kgomotso is managing to stay afloat, producing seasons 9 & 10 of Soul City. Her talk show is our own special flavour Letterman, Leno or O’Brien – the wonderfully african Late Night With Kgomotso, T.O.M. Pictures, of which she is partner, have completed another fantastic season of A Place Called Home, AND they're working on a number of local feature films, just go to T.O.M’s website, it’s all there. BUT it was bad timing when I asked her to share some advice to budding filmmakers as this interview was shot just before the TVIEC marched against our local broadcaster, led amongst others by yes - Kgomotso, here it is…

At first her advice to was “get a real job” followed by lungs of laughter, but second time round she hammered it…

I like that, lungs of laughter, that's my first alliteration since high school ;) Things are undergoing change at the SABC, 9 of 10 board members have resigned, the government will now have to bail out their debt, if you want to know more then either google "TVIEC" or try chat to Kgomotso on Facebook, she’s in the know. OK, so, politics…

If you ever do want to get back into politics girl, you got my vote. Last one, Africa rocks because…

Kgomotso, you rock J

Reggie Makhetha

Reggie Makhetha - born & bred in Soweto, owner of The Roots Restaurant & Gallery. Entrepreneurs run deep in his blood, the family have owned and run hardware stores to shopping centers and Reggie was involved since he was 10. 

At first he would sell sweets and firecrackers from outside the stores, now he’s got his own spot, hear him out…

Reggie recons that if anyone wants to get into hospitality, you gotta have the passion, it’s no 9-5 job, the hours are long and you gotta enjoy people cause you're gonna deal with a lot of personalities.  As far as the gallery is concerned, you must have an eye for good art, more on that…

The restaurant side sells township food - tripe, chicken feet, smileys and also your basic burgers and ribs. The clientele during the week is mainly tourists, but on weekends its guys from the suburbs who miss the township life, hence the name – Roots. As we do on USOYA, here’s the man with his view on African politix...

Thanks Reggie, the food was great and the art selection – dope, only thing missing was the firecrackers ;) Check out the facebook group or call 011 912 0000 if you wanna book.

Thandi Davids

Thandi grew up in a township on the outskirts of Joburg, down the line she moved to a Northen suburbs school called Woodmead, a very alternative and art focused school. After matric she started a law degree, but only because her mother was an advocate and insisted she do so. She soon dropped out and settled on a Bachelor of Arts or as Thandi puts is, “bugger all”. Upon completion she tried to get a job in the advertising world as a copywriter, “but in those days they didn’t hire black copywriters, so I ended up in PR”. Fast forward to today and she owns and runs her own experiential marketing agency called The Collective. So what is The Collective and this “experiential” marketing is all about?

Thandi is another knowledge bank that I’ve had the pleasure of interviewing, I’m sure she’s an assassin at games like trivial pursuit and 30 seconds, here she is on African economics…

I must mention that trying to write down anything Thandi said in the interview is only going to be watered down with my intellect, so I’m sticking to video, here she is on a United States of Africa…

Thank you Thandi J