Two of the members Neo “Smalls” Sematlho and Ikgopoleng “GC” Pule are no longer there. Goitseone “GL” Lesaso is the only remaining original member.
This time around, Suggie Fisher and Evans “Tagg” Modubule, feature on the third album, which makes this an interesting twist of events.
In the last interview with Showbiz the Unik Attraction girls had left their producer, Modubule. A dispute over who has more rights over the name broke out between Tagg and the Unik Attraction girls, Sematlho, Pule, and Lesaso.
The saga dragged on for a few months between the initial girl group and Modubule, producer and founder of Unik Attraction could come to any terms. At the time, Sematlho, Pule and Lesaso, had made claims that Unik Attraction brand belonged to them while Modubule said he was keeping the name because he founded it.
In an interview with Showbiz, Modubule says that he eventually gave up legal rights to the name. He says that he handed the rights over to Lesaso, the only original member of the group.
“For a while after the split I did keep the name, but I decided that the group would just have to go on, even if it was without me. I decided then I would have to give up legal rights to the name,” he says.
Lesaso has been the constant figure since the beginning of Unik Attraction when it was still called the Real Deal. Then she was a back-up vocalist.
The group released a debut album, Ke Nako in 2000, and followed it up with a second release Re Mmogo in 2002. It was only in 2003 that Unik Attraction turned into a household name. Mama Thabo is Unik Attraction’s third album. The album was launched on Friday at the Spearman Restaurant.
Modubule claims that he did this unaware of the event that would follow afterwards.
During Youth against HIV/AIDS month in March, the United Nations called upon Modubule and the girls from Unik Attraction for a meeting of reconciliation.
“It seemed GL was the only one who saw reasoning in the whole matter, but the other girls were adamant in keeping the conflict alive. They were against the idea of us working together again,” he says.
On April 19, Lesaso and the others were involved in an accident. Lesaso was the only one who sustained injuries.
“GL called me after the accident and told me that she was having problems,” Modubule relates.
According to Lesaso her relationship with the other girls ended the day of the accident.
“They would go off to perform at shows, but sometimes I would not even know about some of the shows that they performed at. They had continued without me,” she says.
It was when she was laying in bed with a fractured hip that she decided it was time to make amends with Modubule.
“We have a history together. He and I do go way back. When you have had such a history and problems get in the way it is always best to talk them out, clear the misunderstandings,” she says.
She admits that she still needed Modubule because he knows how to produce the music. Admittedly, the girls would still have hit a detour had they continued on their own.
“I wrote, produced and directed the music. The creative intelligence behind the music would have still rested with me,” Modubule says.
