MOSHUPA: Despite an electrifying start, the eighth annual Gaabo Motho festival in Moshupa was dampened by heavy rains which drenched the area, forcing attendees to seek shelter while other revellers danced in the rain.
It is worth noting that when the festival started the day was sunny and hot so it was actually easy to forget to check out the weather forecast before heading off to one of the biggest festive shows in the South. Most people were so stoked about the music festival and their favourite artists, forgetting that it does sometimes rain at festivals. With the hot conditions of Christmas Eve afternoon, no one dared to just err on the side of caution and bring rainy weather clothes.
Some of the favourites on the line-up like DJ Fresh and DJ KSB performed great sets before there was any sign of precipitation. The award winning DJ KSB didn’t disappoint as usual, serving his fans with some of his trendy collaboration hits like Maloba and Thokoza. The man currently signed under Master KG’s Wanitwa Mos paved way for the surprise act of the night, Paige. There was something different about the artist on the night as her performance was out of the ordinary. Without former partner Sdala B on her side by the decks, Paige did just great and she was indeed worth the ‘surprise act’ status. Perhaps the most gratifying moment about her performance was when she made a tribute to the late South African great, Zahara, who died earlier this month.
Singing the cover of Zahara’s massive 2011 hit Loliwe, Paige did justice to the classic and the Letswai hitmaker was all in tears after the performance. At some point during the performance Paige asked her fans to light up their smartphones in remembrance of Zahara. Local sensation ATI also brought his A-game and he is one of the artists who never disappoint anyday when it comes to performances. Charma Gal was also a sensation on the night.
SA Amapiano sensational vocalist, MaWhoo who is now earning the name ‘Motlalepula (The one who brings rain)’ because of her performances in the rain, delivered a captivating performance when the showers started. The rain didn’t seem like a concern then as revellers didn’t move while she was on stage.
Remember MaWhoo’s first performance in Botswana earlier this month was in the rain at Corona Sunsets. The fact that her fans shrugged off the rainy conditions was enough motivation for the singer whose hits consist of songs like Thokoza, Shona Kwelanga, Kulula, Dali Wam and Ngiyamthanda, among others.
As the rain quietly swamped the area, festival patrons kept smiling and dancing through it allain. There was no delay between sets and for the organisers the show had to go on even though bad weather is grim news for festival management. The downpour-drenched festivalgoers were undeterred by the wet weather right to the moment their favourite artist, Murumba Pitch, started performing on stage.
Murumba Pitch who posted a trendy video of a teary fan on social media hours earlier however didn’t receive the same weepy reaction this time around in the wet conditions of Moshupa. While the showers seemed like something temporary, things went downhill afterwards and some fans couldn’t stand the rain anymore, as the consequences could be dire the next day.
There were some staunch fans however. They trudged through the wet fields of Dladleng getting soaked in the drenching rain as their favourite acts continued to take to the stage. For the organisers, calling off the festival was not an option at the time because there was still hope that it would dissipate, and give way to mostly pleasant conditions.
Overall, fans were in the firing line as the heavy downpours remained until morning when Dr Vom hit the stage. The showers turned into longer spells of rain which continued onto Christmas Day.
