Pacers jazz festival warms up a freezing Saturday night

Kennedy Ramokone | Tuesday April 28, 2026 08:26

Though the event started later than the scheduled time, artists lined up for the day did not disappoint the crowd. Local disc jockeys on the other hand played a wide range of both local and international tunes. Pacers executive director, Mpho Leonard, said although the festival was the first of its kind, he was happy with the attendance despite being lower than they had anticipated. As many already know that jazz and fashion are like twin sisters, the attendees exceeded expectations, arriving in attire well-suited for the occasion.

The director of ceremonies for the day, MC Star Hazel arrived ready for the festival. He changed his attire several times to match the different artists coming onto the stage.

The first act of the day was the multi-talented local dj, Dj Lucy who rocked and kept the crowd up until his last finger on the decks.

He set the bar so high with his opening that you would think the festival was reaching its grand finale. Dj Lucy started with low tempo sounds and increased it with every seconds of his set playing sing-along songs.

Another local dj from Thamaga, Dj Tsix followed him and continued where his brother in the industry left off.

One of the highlights of the evening was the Basadi ba motse hit maker, Thabang Garogwe’s live performance.

He took the audience back to his first album, Basadi ba motse. His performance was a top notch and forced those in attendance to leave their camp chairs to go and sing-along with him by the barricades in front of the state of the art stage.

Mahotella Queens, the group that was formed in 1964 in South Africa, were also there with their sound of mbaqanga.

The only surviving member, who formed the group, Hilda Tloubatla (aged 84), introduced the group to the crowd and sang her birthday song. Her birthday was few days back.

Mahotella Queens pulled back the strings to old days by singing their old songs such as Lilizela Mlilizeli, Melodi ya lla, Re ya dumedisa, Pitsa tse kgolo.

Futhermore, one of South Africa's vocalists and a resilient public figure, Kelly Khumalo did not disappoint on fashion side. She was wearing big stylish nude glittering jacket.

She started with Thando lame to spice up her set. Her performance kept the audience on their toes until her last song. Mafikizolo were on fire with their excellent dance moves. Their energies could be felt even outside the pacers boundaries.

Other performers who graced the day were Kearoma Rantao, Lister Boleseng, Ami Faku, Banjo Mosele just to mention a few.