They opened the stage for South African divas, Lira and Thandiswa Mazwai, at the Africa Day Festival in Newtown, Johannesburg on May 24 and 25. Also performing at the festival were Nigerian, Olufemi, Cameroon’s, Della and Friends, South African, Guy Buttery, and Niger’s, Alhousseini Mohammed Anivolla.
Tanga Pasi proved to be an instant hit with the 800+ audience at Johannesburg’s Bassline. They also appeared on SABC’s Morning Live and were interviewed by Soweto TV and Kaya FM.
Having made their impact on the Johannesburg music scene, they went on to perform for an international audience in Durban at the Antipode Foundation’s Institute for the Geographies of Justice Annual Conference. Their tour finished with pizazz, at the MTN Bushfire Festival in Swaziland. With the support of Pro Helvetia, Tanga Pasi band members Sinini Ngwenya, Pamela Ngwenya, Blessing Shamu, Phatisani Moyo and Caleb Dube pleased audiences at the four high-impact shows. This was the band’s fifth trip to South Africa, having made their mark in Durban during the 2011 international COP17 event where they headlined a two-week cultural festival at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. They have since recorded their debut album, Ntolontolo (a long time ago), which makes a notable contribution to Kalanga-rooted music and is available for download on Amazon, itunes and emusic. Tanga Pasi perform an unusual and catchy fusion of reggae, afro-jazz, folk, rock, Kalanga rhythms and traditional Ndebele harmonies. The band’s leader, Sinini Ngwenya, founded the group in 2009, after many years of experience in the youth imbube group, White Umfolosi, and later with U Zambezi. They hope to appear at this year’s Chimanimani Arts Festival and are also planning another trip to SA, having received interest from audiences and venues in Johannesburg. They are available for bookings and can be contacted on: perichardson@gmail.com or tanga.pasi@gmail.