Lilith
10-20-2002, 05:04 PM
ANDREW MOLEFE
AN unscrupulous music producer was confronted with a "vagina monologue" when an irate female maskandi musician stormed naked into his central Johannesburg office demanding repayment for a recording deal that went awry.
Stark-naked, save for a pair of training shoes and a golden watch, Mapsha Magutshwa shocked the lunch hour crowd in Pritchard Street, downtown Johannesburg, as she sauntered into the sixth floor offices of VMP Productions to demand the R5 200 her group paid to producer Velaphi Mthimkhulu to record their 10-track debut album, Jija Omjiyayo.
She was followed into the building by a crowd, which choked the hallways and effectively rendered the place unworkable. Some businesses occupying the building were forced to close their doors for almost an hour, losing out on trade in the process.
Carrying a placard denouncing the producer as a cheat, Magutshwa posed unashamedly for our cameraman and told City Press that hers was a lone woman's protest "against the injustices of the recording industry".
She said that the industry is "crawling" with fly-by-night recording companies and producers whose business is to fleece wannabe musicians of their money.
"They mostly target people from rural areas and those outside Gauteng," she said. "My lone protest today is a challenge for others who have been robbed this way to talk against these abuses."
Her group's problem started in March last year when they left their hometown of Pietermaritzburg in Kwazulu-Natal to come to Johannesburg to record. It was while scouting for a deal at Johannesburg's downtown studios that they were introduced to the "ace" producer who promised to have their record out within two months.
"He promised he was going to make us stars."
Seventeen months later, the album is yet to be pressed and, according to the Zulu mama, every time they approach the producer for an explanation he avoids them.
"He's been slippery."
Asked why she resorted to the naked protest, she simply said: "It's an attention grabber. That is the only language men understand. "
Mthimkhulu arrived to find the naked protester and the crowd at his office. He whispered something to Magutshwa and hurriedly left the place. She later told City Press he promised he would be back shortly with their refund.
However, when we contacted him a while later, Mthimkhulu claimed he was driving towards Pretoria, where he would find Magutshwa a recording deal.
He promised to arrange for Magutshwa's money to be paid to her husband, the leader of the group. Mthimkulu also pleaded with City Press to drop the story, promising to "give you something nice" if we co-operate.
AN unscrupulous music producer was confronted with a "vagina monologue" when an irate female maskandi musician stormed naked into his central Johannesburg office demanding repayment for a recording deal that went awry.
Stark-naked, save for a pair of training shoes and a golden watch, Mapsha Magutshwa shocked the lunch hour crowd in Pritchard Street, downtown Johannesburg, as she sauntered into the sixth floor offices of VMP Productions to demand the R5 200 her group paid to producer Velaphi Mthimkhulu to record their 10-track debut album, Jija Omjiyayo.
She was followed into the building by a crowd, which choked the hallways and effectively rendered the place unworkable. Some businesses occupying the building were forced to close their doors for almost an hour, losing out on trade in the process.
Carrying a placard denouncing the producer as a cheat, Magutshwa posed unashamedly for our cameraman and told City Press that hers was a lone woman's protest "against the injustices of the recording industry".
She said that the industry is "crawling" with fly-by-night recording companies and producers whose business is to fleece wannabe musicians of their money.
"They mostly target people from rural areas and those outside Gauteng," she said. "My lone protest today is a challenge for others who have been robbed this way to talk against these abuses."
Her group's problem started in March last year when they left their hometown of Pietermaritzburg in Kwazulu-Natal to come to Johannesburg to record. It was while scouting for a deal at Johannesburg's downtown studios that they were introduced to the "ace" producer who promised to have their record out within two months.
"He promised he was going to make us stars."
Seventeen months later, the album is yet to be pressed and, according to the Zulu mama, every time they approach the producer for an explanation he avoids them.
"He's been slippery."
Asked why she resorted to the naked protest, she simply said: "It's an attention grabber. That is the only language men understand. "
Mthimkhulu arrived to find the naked protester and the crowd at his office. He whispered something to Magutshwa and hurriedly left the place. She later told City Press he promised he would be back shortly with their refund.
However, when we contacted him a while later, Mthimkhulu claimed he was driving towards Pretoria, where he would find Magutshwa a recording deal.
He promised to arrange for Magutshwa's money to be paid to her husband, the leader of the group. Mthimkulu also pleaded with City Press to drop the story, promising to "give you something nice" if we co-operate.