Sjava in new venture #FridayFeeling

The Swaziland Solidarity Network (SSN) recently made a call for artists across the African continent to join in solidarity with the cultural boycott against a Swaziland festival.

One of the main performers Jabulani Hadebe, known as Sjava, has heeded the call and rejected his invitation to perform at the Luju Festival in Malkerns this weekend.

SSN believes the cultural boycott is an effective way to address political opinions in the Kingdom of eSwatini, formerly known as Swaziland.

Sjava's management team confirmed that the South African singer, rapper, and actor will not be performing at the festival.

The spokesperson for the SSN, Lucky Lukhele, said the network welcomed the solidarity gesture made by Sjava and expressed their gratitude to him for standing with the oppressed people of Swaziland.

"What Sjava has done is his obligation … Solidarity binds us as human beings and assists us in achieving a common purpose.

"The Network wishes to also acknowledge the tireless efforts made by the People's Poet, Mzwakhe Mbuli, to encourage artists to boycott the kingdom's cultural activities and we further wish to encourage other artists to join the boycott," said Lukhele.

He added that SA Afropop group Mafikizolo is still expected to perform at the Luju Festival.

He says the network is engaging with the group to join the cultural boycott against the festival.

Sonia Mbele gets love for her water business #FridayFeeling

With the summer already sweltering, actress, TV producer and media personality Sonia Mbele has arrived at the right time to quench thirsts as she launches her alkaline water branding and bottling company, Alkamax.

This business venture has added to a list of others she has invested her time in, making her a veritable jack-ofall trades. The TV personality revealed how she saw a gap in the market and thought of filling it.

The new #Tecno Camon 17P is a phone made for social media fans #ProductReview

Tecno, the smartphone brand best known for its sales dominance across Africa, has made its next big move on South Africa's youth market, two months after launching "a flagship phone at a budget price" into this segment.

It has released the Tecno Camon 17P handset, claiming it to be the world's clearest selfie camera smartphone.

While its rise across Africa was largely premised on affordability, it is now combining value for money with cutting-edge technology – at least as far as its target market is concerned.

Along with a huge 6.8-inch full high-definition display, it has a 16MP AI selfie camera on the front and 64MP on the back, combined with 2MP bokeh, 2MP macro lens and AI lens.

The macro is sharp, bokeh works well for artistic effects, and various filters and video templates allow for great customisation of images and videos.

The phone is powered by a G85 Octa-core processor from Mediatek, which designed the chip for the premium 4G gaming smartphone segment.

They use something called HyperEngine gaming technology, which optimises the entire smartphone using four "engines" that cover networking, rapid display and touchscreen response, resource management and picture quality, enabling seamless gameplay.

More processing power means more power drainage, and the 17P addresses this challenge with a 5 000mAh 18W flash-charging battery. It allows for around two days of regular usage, but don't expect the same from powerplay.

"The eight-core CPU [central processing unit] with HyperEngine game optimisation is our fastest chip yet, giving users exceptional performance," says Danni Xu, Tecno chief marketing officer. 

"Also, intelligent scheduling and balancing allows for reallocation of resources to ensure maximum power efficiency so that your battery will last longer.

"We understand the younger generation's need for superior technology to communicate and bring their ideas to the world. In developing our smartphones, we pay special attention to camera features since selfies have become such an important part of users' online identities."

A distinctive design, tall and slim, with a gold-etched logo, gives it a premium look, which ensures it stands out from its similarly priced competitors.

How much is it?

Starts at R4 999.

Are instant noodles safe or deadly

Experts suspect flavouring which have more ingredients.

Are two-minute noodles safe to eat? This has become an important question for many consumers who often eat this instant meal because it is quick to make and often in poor communities because it is cheap and quickly fill up empty tummies.

Five children died after eating two-minute noodles recently, two in Mpumalanga and three in the Eastern Cape, while the department of health is investigating a case of food poisoning in Gauteng.

However, there has been no conclusion about what the children died from.

Instant noodles or ramen are a precooked and dried block of noodles sold with a sachet of flavouring that are cooked or soaked in boiling water before eating.

The instant variety of noodles was created by Momofuku Ando in Japan and first sold in 1958. Ando developed the process of flash frying noodles to ensure a longer shelf life. In Western countries they are usually air-dried.

Dr Hanli de Beer, senior consumer science lecturer at the North-West University, says there is little chance any organism can grow on them if the packets are sealed. 

"Although it does not spoil, what happened during the preparation and when the children ate it would be important. Food poisoning happens when a toxic substance is in the food that is eaten. Symptoms appear within a few hours," she says.

De Beer says the toxin could also be chemical, such as where a container used to prepare the noodles is contaminated. 

However, she and Nicola Brook, director of Foodpath, suspect the flavouring as it contains many more ingredients than the noodles which could be contaminated.

Manufacturer Nestlé has not been contacted regarding the incidents.

Dineo Langa gets South Africans all amped up

Media personality Dineo Langa is on a high after announcing sparkling news to her fans about being a new ambassador for JC Le Roux.

The House of JC Le Roux is South Africa's first dedicated sparkling wine cellar and a leading wine producer.

The Estate star took to her social platforms to pop the big news.

"And just like that, in my year of congratulations, I usher this one with a sparkle. Absolutely thrilled to announce my ambassadorship for the House of JC Le Roux family.

"We have another surprise in store with this fabulous announcement and we promise we won't keep you waiting for too long."

JC Le Roux also shared its excitement: "Vibrant, elegant and ready to sparkle, JC Le Roux Nectar has a sophisticated new look and the equally fabulous Dineo Langa to share it with you. Get ready for the new Nectar, coming soon to a store near you."

The content curator has since received many congratulations from fans and colleagues.

Langa said she was enjoying going from strength to strength. Earlier this year, the actress was celebrated for her new role on SABC 3's telenovela, The Estate. This happened shortly after she left The Queen, leaving fans shattered by her departure.

Sizwe Dlomo and Unathi Nkayi at it again

It has been almost a week since Unathi Nkayi was fired from Kaya 959, and there has been a lot of controversy around her dismissal.

This is because a statement issued by Kaya 959 did not lay down all the details of the events that saw the singer shown the door by the station, leaving many to their own speculations.

The only highlight was how those events broke down the relationship between the two parties.

Only the article by City Press shed light on what transpired at the station, revealing that her dismissal came after a verbal spat with Sizwe Dhlomo.

According to the sources, the former Midday Joy Show presenter had laid complaints about Dhlomo's late arrival for his show, After Noon Drive with Sizwe.

Their altercation led Nkayi to claim that she was verbally abused by
Dhlomo. It's alleged that she described Dhlomo as the "worst" person to work with as he was "always late, rude, domineering, and arrogant".

Dhlomo shared his sentiments in light of what happened between them.

"I'd like to just state that in the context of GBV in our country and even against the backdrop of Kaya's history as an organisation, a false abuse claim is not only malicious to those it is levelled against but it also delegitimises the claims of thousands of victims whose cases fall apart because of lack of evidence.

"Such an egregious lie is a highly irresponsible thing to do."

Dhlomo believes he would have lost his job if it was not for the recording which proved his innocence.

His reputation would have also been damaged because verbal abuse is a serious issue.

He said the microphones in the studio were on and recorded their heated argument, and this helped him to take it to human resources. After listening to the recording, it was uncovered that Nkayi was not verbally abused in any way.

After these events, Dhlomo claimed that he thought they were getting along because Nkayi was the reason he was at Kaya 959. She even sent him a message asking if she could give Greg Maloka, then station managing director, his number and every interaction people heard was sincere.

Watch: Makhadzi and Master KG lap dance gets people drooling

Makhadzi and Master KG have again sparked dating rumours after a video of them fondling during their studio session was recently shared on social media.

The two Limpopo-born stars announced their long-term relationship had come to an end in 2020 after they chose to focus on their budding careers

"Me and Makhadzi parted ways months ago to focus on our careers. We are still young and we need to achieve big things. (We) hope everyone understands and respects that. I am no longer going to answer anything related to this. Thanks," Master KG wrote on Facebook.

"Indeed it is true, it has come to an end of our relationship. Kindly respect our decision," Makhadzi took to her time-line to confirm the news.

Now that the two stars have reached the height of their stardom, Mzansi seems to be convinced they have rekindled their relationship.

This is after Makhadzi shared a Facebook Live on Friday during her studio session with Master KG, dancing and singing to an unreleased love song while pointing at each other.

Makhadzi has previously slammed speculation that she and Master KG were an item.

She did so in a Facebook Live video in which she said they had a platonic relationship and viewed each other as siblings.

"What happened between Master KG and I is that we decided to be a brother and sister. We are OK. We are cool," she said.

Thuli Phongolo talks about #TheWife

Actress Thuli Phongolo has penned a letter of gratitude after the première of Showmax's new telenovela The Wife.

Thuli, who juggles life as a DJ and an actress, is part of the cast of The Wife, which is based on Dudu Busani-Dube's best-selling novel Hlomu the Wife.

Taking to Instagram on Thursday, Thuli said she was excited for the audience to finally acquaint themselves with her new character Lerato, and that she is enjoying every minute portraying the role.

"I'm glad you guys have finally met Lerato! What a job she is, oh but I love her! You just never see her coming because she hides her layers well, but everything she does, she does with intent ... things get quite interesting!" she wrote.

"Happy to be a part of the phenomenon that's Hlomu: The Wife, enjoying the cast so much! An original, a love story with a twist," she wrote. Though the telenovela is based on Busani-Dube's novel, the author and journalist has warned fans that the show will be different from the book.

"It's going to be very different ... There are going to be new things and new people introduced by the film part of it, and things that are going to be left out from the book.

"This is a telenovela inspired by the book, so it changes. It changes a lot. So look, ja, it's going to be different, but people are going to love it," she said. - Times.

How fame found Lady Du

The music industry is filled with fame-hungry talents that quit when careers take too long to blossom. The long road to success did not stop Duduzile "Lady Du" Ngwenya from reaching her dreams.

The amapiano artist spent 15 years experimenting with different music genres with the hope of finding one that would suit her personality.

The Vosloorus-born artist started her music career under the wing of her father, DJ Choc, at the age of 10. At the time, she was celebrated as the youngest R&B artist in Mzansi.

"I would see my dad clean his equipment in preparation for his gigs and it sparked interest in me. I sometimes used his equipment to mimic what I usually saw him do.

"My dad realised my interest and started teaching me his work when I was nine," she said.

But the clubs were not a good place for a child to hang out. Even with her excitement to perform behind the decks, she realised that the nightlife was dominated by older people who did not share her interests, apart from her skills.

She then took a break from late-night performances to focus on school, while keeping an eye on her grandfather and singer Elias Ngwenya, uncle DJ Zan D and her father to enrich her musical skills.

Ngwenya spent her tertiary years studying somatology at a London university and worked as a somatologist and skin therapist before returning to South Africa in 2012.

Zakes Bantwini makes history with #Osama

Congratulations are in order for Zakes Bantwini after his chart-topping single Osama became the first and only single since RadioMonitor's establishment to retain the no 1 spot for 10 weeks in a row on SA radio charts.

RadioMonitor confirmed the milestone was inclusive of both international and local songs released in the past five years since the launch of the British music company.

Bantwini's Afro-electronic dance hit single featuring Kasango surpassed the record of songs like Prince Kaybee's Fetch Your Life and tunes by the American R&B duo Silk Sonic, which have had 12 non-consecutive weeks at no 1 on the RAMS chart.

When Mzansi first heard the Osama single after videos of Bantwini's live performance at Kunye were shared, they could not get enough, and many dubbed it their 2021 song of the year.

Since its release on September 10, many renowned DJs have been playing the song at venues across the world.

From Spain to Portugal, England, Switzerland and even Kenya, Bantwini has broken boundaries with the song and is set to make an even bigger impact with other singles from his album Ghetto King.

The musician has been vocal about continuing his mission to use music to unite Africa and the world.