Johannesburg - Making its festival debut at Mary Fitzgerald Square in Newtown, Joburg, last Saturday was the Sportscene Capsule Fest. It proved to be an impressive celebration of street culture, showcasing the very best in fashion, music, art and food.
Notably, headline exhibitor Adidas Originals presented a premium range of footwear and apparel in an interactive retail space.
Sneaker fans in Adidas footwear were granted access to the Adidas Originals VIP lounge, where they enjoyed great front-row views of live performances by more than 30 well-known and up-and-coming artists, including big names such as AKA, Sho Madjozi, Da L.E.S and US hip-hop artist A$AP Ferg.
Nike offered its loyal followers tattoos. However, it appeared as if the famous Nike logo wasn’t the imprint of choice as every other person passing by was spotted sporting the Africa continent outline on their arm.
The performance by A$AP Ferg was worth the wait. The crowd had paid their dues by the time he hit the stage. By that, we mean they’d suffered through a number of acts emitting beats that sounded the same, seen too many people jump up and down shirtless on stage and heard the line, “give it up for yourselves one time” too many times.
A$AP Ferg delivered most of his hits, including New Level, Shabba Ranks and Coach Cartier, and provided some authentic energy, which the crowd responded to by singing along and partying.
Among the outstanding acts were Sho Madjozi, who lit things up with her traditional infused hip-hop; rapper Shane Eagle, who dared to utter a few meaningful statements; and Youngsta CPT, who showed us exactly what freestyle is.
The event may have been better attended if it wasn’t competing with popular music festival Major League Gardens, held in Soweto on the same day. Still, for an inaugural event, this was pretty good.
(Sportscene Capsule Fest. Photos: Cedric Nzaka)