Mmegi30yrs: Showbiz still going strong 30 years on

Staff Writer | Tuesday August 19, 2014 14:20

 

Arts and Culture encompasses many disciplines, which include but are not limited to the performing arts (drama, poetry etc) as well as visual and fine arts.

From the onset, Mmegi made a commitment to giving readers diverse news, which of course included what is widely referred to as entertainment. In its early years, the section of the paper that catered for culture and entertainment related articles was called Mmegi Weekend. The section covered an array of topics, which included music, drama, arts, culture and general entertainment the latter covering pageantry, music festivals just to name a few.

The paper, as evidenced by one of the above articles, headlined; “Lack of Facilities Hampers Talent,” carried in-depth reporting on a number of issues including challenges facing the entertainment industry. Mmegi boasted seasoned reporters such as Mike Mothibi, Mesh Moeti, Modirwa Kekwaletswe and Titus Mbuya to mention but a few.

Mmegi groomed most of the reporters considered to be the best in the country, and many of them went on to become some of the best editors the country has had. As the years progressed, the Mmegi Weekend transformed into Culture, which gave the paper flexibility to diversify its coverage of the arts and culture and entertainment industries. Culture was later changed to Arts and Culture Review. Mmegi at the time was a weekly, but as growth opportunities became available, the paper became a daily in October of 2003. The paper going daily provided more space for the section to grow, and as a result Showbiz was born.

The section now became more defined with Showbiz catering for certain disciplines like music (album reviews), performing arts, festivals, and general entertainment news, while Arts and Culture Review, gave more in-depth reporting on arts, culture, literature reviews, film reviews, and a food critique column.  The paper also featured educational columns on music and a variety of issues.

One of the popular columns, was Musika, whose writer was none other than the late Rampholo Molefhe, a veteran journalist and a musician.

Today, Mmegi provides readers with up to date, quality entertainment news while giving exposure to artists from different disciplines. The careers of now legendary musicians such as Banjo Mosele, Nnunu Ramogotsi, Shanti-Lo, Clement Jackson, and Kearoma Rantao, were bolstered within the Entertainment pages, helping local music reach international audiences and raising the country’s profile.