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Saving some of the best for last, the month-long Arts Alive Festival ended with two international musicians who pulled out all the stops at their concerts.
CUBAN musician Eliades Ochoa and Canada's Tamia lived up to expectations with the two musicians wowing hundreds of fans who flocked to Newtown on Friday and Saturday evenings to the two concerts.
The shows - with the two international musicians performing at different venues - were part of the Arts Alive Late Night in Newtown programme, in which musicians and DJs performed at venues in Johannesburg's premier entertainment precinct.
Violin wizard Dr Subramaniun played sublime Indian classical music
Ochoa, performing at the Bassline on Friday, had fans eating out of his hand. From the moment he came on stage, the audience could not resist his rhythmic tunes - and many hit the dance floor.
His support act, violin wizard Dr Subramaniun, also gave people their money's worth. The Indian musician - despite being relatively unknown in South Africa - belted out sublime Indian classical music that had the audience begging for more.
Meanwhile, over at Mary Fitzgerald Square, South Africa's Keabetswe Motsilanyane, known as KB, opened for Tamia. On Saturday night, again at the Bassline, Ochoa was back on form, this time supported by one of the most influential Xhosa musicians in the country, Camagwini, for a rousing evening of world music.
But the younger crowd swamping Newtown on the night was headed for Tamia's show. Hundreds of fancily dressed young men and women filled the huge white marquee at Mary Fitzgerald Square to see the Canadian R&B singer strut her stuff.
Tamia crooned some of her best songs, like Stranger in My House
Before the star, though, KB warmed up the audience for her, wowing them with her popular hits like Rock Lefatse, O A Lla and Life is Good.
When the Canadian finally came on stage, the marquee went berserk. Wearing a simple grey dress and a black belt, she took her fans back to the 1990s with songs like So Into You, Falling For You and You Put a Move on my Heart.
With the crowd calling for more, Tamia crooned some of her best songs yet, like Stranger in My House, which got fans swaying. Much later in the night she bid her audience goodbye, but they still had not had enough.
And as people started streaming out, she returned to the stage - to much excitement. Those who had already left came running back for more grooves. When Tamia finally ended her session, a good many people in the audience claimed this was one of the best shows they had ever been to.
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