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United In Music - 2010 SA Music Conference Review by Thando Mazibuko
Published on Jul. 22, 2010, 12:01 AM Last Update: 1 years ago by RichieR
Tags: South African Music Conference 2010


Music, music, music! I really doubt there is any other form of art that manages to unite people like music does. It is also good to know that there are people who commit themselves to reviving the love by educating people on how to make and deliver the music to the people.

I recently got the privilege of attending the Southern African Music Conference which took place between the 5th and 8th of July at the Alexandra Theatre in Johannesburg. Hundreds of aspiring DJs, managers and producers flocked into the venue on Monday to get tips and pointers from the ‘Pros’ and of course to rub shoulders with their favourite celebrity DJs.

I mean, who would not want to interact with the likes of Halo, Ralf Gum, Lars Behrenroth and Martin East who were the special guests at this year’s SAMC not forgetting our local DJs Fresh, Oskido, Black Coffee, Culoe, Vinny Da Vinci and Greg Maloka, just to name a few.

Presentations ranged from the legal sphere of the music business to how you need to plan your set. This is valuable information that a lot of DJs take for granted and often overlook. Ralf touched on how important it is to take what you do seriously, something that I think has not been done by a lot of DJs out there who still view it as ‘just a hobby’. 

It has become more than that and I believe that it has become one of the most sort after careers in the modern times. Funny thing is while Ralf was doing a presentation, one of the delegates asked him if he could have his supper while playing a set. I thought this guy was joking but he was actually serious. It comes to show how serious he takes his DJ career. We thank him for the comic relief though, that was quite a moment.

From all the presentations it dawned upon me that technology has seriously taken this industry by storm. From digital sales to simply attaching a memory stick onto a CDJ and playing a full set from it. This comes just as a lot of people were still getting used to playing CDs at a club. Times sure are moving and it is up to you whether you move with the times or stay in the past.

Martin East says ‘you tell a story through your music and it does not matter what you use, what is important is how you tell the story and captivate the crowd’. He also added that DJs should not be afraid of technology which is something I think is the problem. “It is like learning to play all over again” someone once told me.

Lars, Ralf, Halo and Martin on the other hand say, “IT IS IN THE WAY YOU DELIVER THE MUSIC AND NOT IN THE EQUIPMENT YOU USE”. Let us not blame the equipment for a bad set (I know a lot of people will kill me for writing this).
One word that was frequently used was ‘COMMERCIAL’. It must have been used in every session. Oskido was not happy about this and mentioned that ‘music is music’ and people should stop with these categories. Who comes up with these names anyway?

Martin East says “Commercial is music that is easily accessible” which rings true seeing that a track is considered ‘DEEP’ when it is new and as it gains popularity, people say it is ‘commercial’.




How do we then define DEEP HOUSE? An exact definition of deep house does not exist. “In my view, music has got to move you inside and when it does that, it is deep” says Lars. Whatever we want to call our music though, it still remains MUSIC!
The feminine touch presentation made sure that the ladies do not feel left out although they felt right at home from the beginning. They even had pointers for both genders – although gender was not really much of an issue at the conference.

If people were not motivated then I am quite sure Greg Maloka’s presentation got a whole lot of people inspired. If my Science teacher conducted her presentations that way, I would have been a world renowned Scientist right now. Well that’s a bit far-fetched but it was a great presentation.

Social media was a buzz word as most of us are hooked on the social networking sites. Even I learnt a thing or two on how to utilise the platform to advertise myself on them. There is no better exposure than that obtained on the net. It is the 21st century after all plus you pay close to nothing to market yourself.

That was until the spotlight was briefly stolen from the celebrity deejays on the third day of the conference as the President of the ANCYL graced us with his presents. People surely expected a lot of controversial statements as ‘Juju’ never runs out of those but he actually gave sound advice.

He touched on fame and behavioural changes. It is no secret that a lot of our artists are sometimes blinded by their ‘new money’ and partake in dangerous deeds such as drug abuse and unsafe sex. He encouraged radio stations to play more local music and applauded the likes of Oskido and Vinny Da Vinci for putting the conference together.  His talk was accompanied by a lot of laughs, as expected. The man is quite an entertainer. All the presentations and talks were informative and I do hope the delegates will use what they have learnt to improve on their careers.

It is safe to say that the SAMC 2010 was a great success. A lot was learnt and people’s perspectives on South African music have changed for the better. From here it should only get better and am looking forward to next year’s conference. There’s definitely a lot of unity in music…

Words by: Thando Mazibuko

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