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PDBY Featured Artist: Motive

Thando Dlamini

PDBY recently spoke to third year mechanical engineering student Lethabo Kupayi, also known as Motive, about him, his music and what it is like being a student DJ.

When did you realise that being a DJ is what you want to do?

Growing up one of my uncles used to have virtual DJ on his laptop and that’s how I started. When I moved to PTA, I kept on playing. I met one of my friends, Rethabile, and we carried on together. And it just clicked that I wanted to deejay because I have been doing it since primary school.

Which DJs (internationally and local) inspire you?

There are a lot. Locally, it has to be LeNanza, I think she’s the best DJ in PTA, I love her. I also think Venom is great. Usually, I look out to everyone that’s made it but right now those are my favourite DJs. Internationally DJ Crazy is great. There [aren’t] a lot of huge hip hop DJs internationally, but also Black Coffee is crazy, Major League DJs and mostly all the amapiano guys that are doing crazy stuff internationally and I look up to them also. But I am a hip-hop DJ.

How is it performing at full clubs as a student?

It’s pretty crazy and amazing. It’s like the best thing ever. Every time I get on stage, and I see all those people having the time of their lives because of me is really special. It’s like I have the power to make people happy and it’s so great also that I’m also doing something that makes me really happy, I love it.

You released Love Tapes Vol 1.0 earlier this year, what inspired the mix?

There was a certain girl I liked when the year started, I never got to date her, but it was Valentine’s Day, and I made her listen and hoped she’d feel the same way but she moved away from PTA.

What are the biggest hurdles you’ve had to overcome so far in being a musician?

There’s so many but the worst things that’s ever happened to me has to be lockdown. It messed up so much for me, life wasn’t the same and I couldn’t go out and do what I love and make people happy and dance. So, lockdown has to be the worst thing that’s happened .

You have worked with Homecoming Events, what was the experience like working an event like that?

That was really great, it was one of my biggest shows not in numbers, but the experience was crazy. They are really professional and took care of me really nicely. You feel like a superstar there, I mean I feel like a superstar when I’m at most of my shows but that was a level higher, it feels really great. I think that was one of my happiest and favourite shows I have played. Homecoming is definitely top two shows I have ever played.

Which DJ would you love to work with in the future?

I’d love to work with Venom, because I really look up to him and one day, I wish I could play a back-toback set with him, he’s really great. Music wise, I’d love to work with DJ Slick. Sfarzo RT [and I] got to work on stuff but never finished that. I want to work with Lesedi the DJ also TP the DJ, they are great guys who are doing great things in PTA, I’m all about the city.

What can we expect next from you in terms of releasing another mixtape?

I have kind of [taken] a break from releasing mixes online. I have just been focusing more on performances and if you want to see me just come to one of my shows. I don’t really like dropping mixtapes unless it’s for radio.

Image provided

Who has been supporting you throughout all of this the past year?

The past year has been so tough for me, but I have always had my mom by my side supporting me and keeping me moving and the rest of my family. They mean so much to me and keep pushing me and have helped me get over some of the toughest times. and I love being a DJ but sometimes it gets really hard, and you need people that love you and my family has been able to do that.

Meg Norquoy on her music career

Minentle Mndiyata

PDBY had the pleasure of talking to Meg Norquoy, who is a performing artist from Pretoria. In this interview Meg chats to us about her music career, how she started and how social media has impacted her music journey.

At what age did you realise that music was your passion and that you really wanted to pursue it as a career?

So I think I always knew that I enjoyed music and singing from a super young age. I still remember my favorite songs from when I was in nursery school. I always toyed with the idea of singing as a career, but I never took it seriously until August 2021, [when] I was presented with the opportunity of a gig. After that first gig, the gigs haven’t really stopped, so I guess it’s only now that I’m realising: “Hey! Maybe I should do this for real now?”.

You started posting videos of you doing covers in 2017, but in 2018 you posted about finally making a video singing something that you wrote, how long did it take you to transition from performing covers to writing your own songs, and how has that helped you grow as an artist?

I loved singing along to songs all the time, but it was thanks to one of those silly assignments for a compulsory music subject in grade 9 that started my love for writing them. We got told to write a song for marks and after I figured out the first one, I started writing more and more. I think I only started singing originals on stage in my first year of varsity at the Aandklas Open Mics though.

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happily listen to whatever I played (even if it was horrible). They’ve always supported me in music and inspired me! My dad shows my videos to anyone he meets, which can be kinda embarrassing, haha..

Is there any specific artist that inspires your music?

Johan and I have varying tastes in music, so our originals sound very different. I’ve been inspired mostly by Paramore’s newer albums, as well as YouTube-made artists like dodie and Orla Gartland. Johan’s main inspiration is Matt Costa. Soon, we’ll be writing songs together, so it’ll be cool to see how our songs sound in the future.

How did the name Meggs and Toast come about and what does it represent?

Well, I’ve been looking for a guitarist for a while now, and when Johan and I chatted after an Open Mic at Aandklas, we decided to play together. The name was a joke I’d decided on for my Instagram account after a night out with friends filled with horrible puns. Johan, a man of puns himself, didn’t mind being the toast to Meggs.

How has social media helped you grow your brand as an artist?

I’ve found that once you start playing gigs, an Instagram account helps a lot because we’ve [got] a few opportunities due to our content. However, Tiktok trumps all apps in terms of getting content out there. So many more people see and share songs/covers posted on Tiktok. So it’s definitely helped with putting our name out there.

Parents are usually skeptical about letting their children get into the arts, how did you convince your family that music was the one for you and that you could make it work?

Unfortunately in my case, skepticism was never an option for me. My mother was a musician in the 80s and my dad went with her to gigs. So my mom taught me how to play guitar and piano, and my dad would

What do you hope to achieve in the future through your music?

Johan and I want to put our music out on all platforms and aim to do so in the coming year! We’re passionate about music and to be able to share our music specifically would be amazing. Personally, I would love to play at big festivals in the future, like Park Acoustics or Splashy, so it’s definitely something we plan on working towards!

Is there anything that you are currently working on that you would like to share with us?

At the moment we’re working on originals mostly, but we do have an online concert coming up with 11:77 productions which is super cool! It was shot at the stunning Blades Hotel, and I recommend watching their Instagram page (@1177productions ) to see when tickets go on sale!

Respublica Rising Stars

Minentle Mndiyata

Respublica Rising Stars is an initiative that was introduced by the Respublica Student Living Accommodation on 22 June. This segment is aimed at introducing the world to an array of talent within the Respublica residences, each week a student was featured on the Respublica_life Instagram account. The likes of Precious Nkosi from Hatfield Square, Roman Figga from Eastwood Village, and many other students were featured on this segment.

On 23 October, the Residences all came together at the Saratoga Village, a Respublica residence in Johannesburg, to witness the Battle of the Stars. This was a great opportunity for these different students as they got the chance to showcase their diverse talents in front of an audience and also got to compete amongst each other for great prizes. There were 17 stars in total, some from the Cape Town Respublica residence. A rapper from West City and a poet from Hatfield Square made it to the top 3, coming in 3rd and 2nd respectively. A rapper and a saxophonist from the Saratoga Village (Sabelo and Phemelo) were crowned the Respublica stars.

Sport

PDBY Featured Athlete: TuksBasketball with Liam Hayward

Mfundo Masiya

Liam Hayward in a TuksBasketball player and a third year BCom Investment Management student at UP. Hayward recently captained his team at the 2021 USSA Basketball Men’s Championships, and spoke to PDBY about his basketball journey.

How did you get into basketball?

I went to a small primary school so there wasn’t much sport there. However, in high school there were a couple of sports. Initially I tried rowing but I really didn’t enjoy it. Because of my height I thought it made sense to try basketball and after that I never looked back.

TuksSwimming at the CANA African Championship - UPDATED

Held in Ghana this year, the 2021 CANA African Championships saw UP’s TuksSwimming claim multiple medals with winning times. For more results after the date of publication, check out @ tukssport.

Samantha Randle:

Bronze - Women’s 100m backstroke - 1:06.01 Silver - Women’s 800m freestyle - 9:07.95 Silver - Women’s 200m backstroke - 2:17.21 Gold - Women’s 3km open water - 37:11.35

Catherine van Rensburg

Gold - Women’s 100m breaststroke - 1:12.76 Gold - Women’s 200m breaststroke - 2:36.17 Gold - Women’s 400m medley - 5:06.17 Gold - Women’s 1,5km freestyle - 17:08.04

Stephanie Houtman:

Silver - Women’s 400m freestyle - 4:40.17 Silver - Women’s 3km open water - 38:23.18 Gold - Women’s 800m freestyle - 9:07.14

Christin Mundell:

Silver - Women’s 200m freestyle - 2:04.60 Gold - Women’s 50m breaststroke - 32.64 Gold - Women’s 400m freestyle - 4:40.02 Gold - Women’s 400m individual medley - 5:10.80

Sport Bites

TuksHockey head to India

TuksHockey saw nine players named as part of the South Africa under 21 national field hockey team that will play in the 2021 Men’s FIH Hockey Junior World Cup. The tournement will take place in India from 24 November to 5 December. The team will be led by captain Guy Morgan and vice-captain Jared Campbell.

TuksVolleyball win silver

What is your favourite thing about basketball?

I think basketball is the most entertaining and intense sport. It’s [a] really fast-paced sport with a lot of scoring on both sides - I really like that.

Did you play basketball during the initial stages of the pandemic?

No. From when the COVID-19 pandemic started in March, 2020 through to the end of 2020 - I didn’t play much.

How did you cope with that?

I didn’t like it at all. I eventually got a hoop to throw some shots and practice at home - just to stay active, but it never replaced being with people and actually playing.

You captained the Tuks team at the recent SA University Basketball championships. How do you feel about your performance and the performance of the team?

We achieved the most important thing - getting into [the] Top 8. That qualifies us for next year’s Varsity Cup. I think that’s a great achievement as well considering our team was filled with mostly first years playing in their first ever University tournament. We were at a huge disadvantage in terms of experience but the boys pulled through. With my individual performance I was quite satisfied. With the team there were mistakes due to inexperience but that’s something we’ll be working on.

What are your goals for the future in basketball?

For next year I’m gunning to make the University Sports South Africa (USSA) National team, I’m really serious about that. On top of that it would be great if I could lead the Tuks-UP basketball team to a USSA win and some trophies.

What is the state of Basketball in South Africa?

From the point of view of funding in the sport it’s not great. But things are getting better. The Cape Town Tigers are a team that’s setting the pace for basketball in South Africa. They are showing the world that we can play Basketball in South Africa.

Lizanne Viljoen:

Bronze - Women’s 100m butterfly - 1:04.19 Gold - Women’s 200m butterfly - 2:19.35

Roberto Gomes:

Bronze - Men’s 400m freestyle - 4:03.72 Bronze - Men’s 800m freestyle - 8:27.33 Bronze - Men’s 1500m freestyle - 16:24.33

Andrew Ross:

Silver - Men’s 200m freestyle - 1:51.63 Silver - Men’s 4x200m freestyle relay - 7:34.09 Gold - Mixed 4x100m freestyle relay - 3:34.02 - African Championships Record

Matthew Randle:

Silver - Men’s 50m breaststroke - 28.70 Silver - Men’s 100m breaststroke - 1:03.06 Silver - Men’s 200m breaststroke - 2:15.03 Seven gold medals in the junior category as a Tuks Sports High School swimmer.

Compiled by Kayla Thomas

TuksVolleyball women’s team won the silver medal at the 2021 Volleyball South Africa National Club Championships, held in Benoni. The team was led by captains GP Fourie and Natasha Webber, and assistant coach Rudolph du Plessis. With their second place win, the team has also qualified for the 2022 CAVB Zone Six tournament.

TuksVolleyball player, Natasha Webber, was also named Most Valuable Player in the women’s division. On being named MVP, Webber told TuksSport that she “never expected to still have such a big impact on my team and other players in general. [...] It is an honour and a privilege to still [...] make a difference.”

TuksCricket alumni Player of the Match

TuksCricket alumni, Ruben Trumpelmann, was named Player of the Match as an Namibian international cricketer for the recent match against Scotland as part of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.

TuksRugby players signed

TuksRugby player, Jaco Bezuidenhout, has been signed with the Houston SaberCats Rugby in the USA for the 2022 Major League Rugby season. Bezuidenhout plays a flanker position and co-led UPTuks to a Varsity Cup victory in May.

TuksRugby player, Johan Mulder, was also signed for the 2022 season with Griquas Rugby. Mulder plays a scrum-half position and has represented UP at the Varsity Cup.

Compiled by Kayla Thomas. Info via TuksSport.

Do you want to nominate someone for Featured Athlete? Let PDBY know and they could be featured in the next edition!

Would you want to play for the Cape Town Tigers in the future?

Yes definitely. If not internationally I’d be happy to go there and try out.

What advice would you give aspiring players of the game?

I’d say they should just believe in themselves. Starting out I didn’t have much coordination but I just stuck with it, playing and practicing every day and through hard work I got better and better.

What would your five player all-star team look like?

Point Guard: Stephen Curry Shooting Guard: Kobe Bryant Small Forward: Michael Jordon Power Forward: Lebron James Centre: Shaquille O’Neal @PDBYMedia