South Africa is the Country of Honour at the world’s biggest music fair, and musicians and industry businesses from Joburg will be there.

JOBURG will be well represented at Midem 2010 in the south of France next year, after South Africa was named the Country of Honour for the event, the world’s largest music industry trade fair.

Afro-soul singer Lira will be in Cannes in January

The list includes urban hotshot duo Jozi, platinum record-selling rock and pop group The Parlotones, hip-hop rapper Zulu Boy, Afro-soul singer Lira and the Maletangwoa Cultural Group.

The annual conference, taking place from 24 to 27 January 2010 in Palais des Festivals, Cannes, in France, brings together people in the music business from 80 countries. They meet face-to-face to do business, analyse trends and build partnerships.

Among the musicians and businesses from Johannesburg will be Jozi; The Parlotones; the music label, Sovereign Entertainment; Moshito; and Essential Music, the distribution company.

Glenn Masokane, the director of cultural development at the Department of Arts and Culture, said this time around a group of more diverse artists and cultural groups would be selected.  “We are very excited about the artists who are going to Midem 2010,” he said.

Being named Country of Honour gave South Africa the opportunity to open up new markets. “We want to showcase the diversity of music that is created in our amazingly rich country and we believe that the artists who have been chosen to represent South Africa will do it admirably and with great effect.”

Lira
Lira Molapo, one of them, said she was looking forward to the experience, which could prove pivotal for her career. “This will be an opportunity for us to explore international markets and see if we can build relationships with other labels … for potential distribution of our music in European markets,” said the Sama award winner.

Everyone picked for the conference had earned their spot. “I am very patriotic and passionate about South Africa and our music,” she said. “It’s taken a lot of hard work and preparation, but I think all of us have proven that we can represent our country well.”

Raphael Domalik, the manager of The Parlotones and the chief executive Sovereign Entertainment, said the group was excited to be returning to the conference. “We were at Midem earlier this year and now we are returning to officially represent South Africa in 2010.”

He added: “It’s great to be part of this incredible opportunity to profile South Africa to the rest of the global music world.” The Parlotones have already notched up an impressive slate of live performance dates and releases in Europe, highlighting their appeal to a global music market and the importance of being at Midem.

Tribute
The organisers have put together a two-day programme designed to put South African music on centre stage by first paying tribute to artists who paved the path for today’s musicians and then by selling contemporary home-grown tunes.

The live performances will not be simply artist focused, but will also be presented under several themes. The opening showcase party on 24 January at the Martinez Hotel will be a Tribute to the Legends, featuring a number of exclusive collaborations by South African artists.

The artists will be supported by a backing band overseen by Themba Mkhize, who will also be the music director at the VIP dinner on 25 January. This event will be a Tribute to Miriam Makeba and Mkhize, an award-winning pianist, composer, producer and music director, is planning something special.

The artist line-up will be boosted by several deejays, including Sama award winners Black Coffee and DJ Christos, who will be playing nothing but local music at the various events.

A music industry conference will focus on problems faced by South African artists and others from the rest of Africa. The Department of Arts and Culture and the South African music industry at large is partnering with Midem 2010 in ensuring South Africa’s Country of Honour status is maximised.

Masokane said it would expose South African content on a global scale and “give local musicians, producers and promoters an opportunity to partner with the international world and take our music to a broader audience”.

He added: “It is with this in mind that we have carefully planned a full programme of events that will take advantage of these opportunities as well as give Midem 2010 delegates an intimate and wonderful experience of live South African music.”

Rich heritage
Dominique Leguern, the director of Midem, said the organisation was proud to launch the 44th Midem with the focus on the local music industry.

“South Africa has an extremely rich and diverse musical heritage,” she said, explaining that this would “enable all our participants to appreciate the huge scope of talented artists from this culturally diverse and rich country [and] offer the international music industry a unique springboard into the Southern African market”.

The musicians and deejays will be joined in France by a contingent of local organisations such as the Association of Independent Recording Companies of South Africa (Airco), Moshito and Joburg-based Essential Music.

Nathan Adams, the director of Essential Music, said this was an “opportunity to meet more international labels looking for access to and distribution in the South African market”.

Just Music, the independent label, and Synchro Music Management, the production music library agent, will also be making use of the South African pavilion.

Synchro’s creative manager, Louise Bulley, said: “There are many advantages to being at Midem 2010. One is to put South African music up there in the international arena and let the rest of the world see our potential … We can learn a lot from the international music scene and we know that what happens on the scene comes to us years later.”

Other companies heading to Midem include Content Connect Africa, Gallo Music Group, Geoff Paynter Music Publishing, JDL Music and Select Music.

At Midem this year, there were 8 000 individual participants; some 4 000 companies from 80 countries and 450 journalists from 300 media organisations attended.

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