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In this episode, presenter Palesa Tembe is at the SA Fashion Week. Plus, the king of rice, Nigerian jollof, handcrafted bicycles from Namibia and the South African DIY queen Amantle Tshweu.
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00:08Held in Madrid's Mall of Africa, SA Fashion Week is a premier platform showcasing the
00:13latest trends and talents in the South African fashion world.
00:18It celebrates innovation, diversity and creativity in the industry, highlighting both established
00:25designers and emerging voices in the industry on the global scale.
00:29But first, we find out more about Namibian handcrafted bikes by Ongoza Bicycles.
00:36Amantle Chwewu shows us how she started her thriving interior design business in South Africa.
00:42Then we meet Congolese-born Boogie Mowli, an ex-professional soccer player turned artist.
00:50I'm Pali Satembe and you're watching AfriMax.
01:07Nigerian Jollof Rice, renowned for its colour and rich flavour.
01:12It is a cherished dish at gatherings in Nigeria and beyond.
01:16Let's check out some of its secrets.
01:20It's still boiling.
01:21Who makes the best Jollof Rice in Africa?
01:24The Nigerians pretty much agree.
01:28Nigerian Jollof Rice is the best because they do it very well.
01:32But what makes it so special?
01:36The important thing I love about this Jollof is the smoky effect.
01:40There's tiny bits of protein. There's pomo here. There's fish here. It's really, really nice.
01:46The colour as well. It's giving Nigerian Jollof. I love it.
01:51All over West Africa, people are arguing about who makes the best Jollof Rice.
01:56We'll come back to the Jollof Wars later.
01:58But first, let's get a few unbiased Jollof lovers have their say in Lagos.
02:03Nigerian Jollof Rice is the best. I can eat it morning, afternoon, night.
02:08I eat Jollof Rice almost every day. And if I don't eat it in a week, I make sure I
02:13eat it on Sunday.
02:16At Just Jollof, they specialise in Jollof Rice, which can be made on firewood,
02:20therefore giving it another term called firewood Jollof,
02:23which gives the rice a smoky taste and very flavourful.
02:28For me, I feel Jollof Rice is a meal that is basically known for celebration growing up.
02:35And then right now in our society, there's no party without Jollof Rice.
02:41These are the ingredients you need.
02:43Rice. Most Nigerians prefer short grain rice compared to the long grain or basmati rice that the
02:48Ghanaians prefer. You need water, tomatoes, tomato paste, garlic, ginger, thyme, a variety of peppers,
02:56stalk, crayfish, dried fish or shrimp to give the rice some additional flavour.
03:01So first of all, we'll start with this pot. This pot is an iron cast pot. It's called aquari in
03:07Europa. And it's very, very important in making your firewood, your Jollof Rice. Because for firewood,
03:12the flame is, the fire is very, very hot. So you need a pot that can stand it for like
03:18two to three
03:18hours. Because for you to make a very good, authentic overbite, overbite, overbite jollof,
03:22you need your Jollof Rice to burn. Now I'm going to add the butter, which is the margarine,
03:26into the Grand North Island fire. We have our shredded onion, our onions cut into bits for flavour.
03:32And it's very important in cooking. And there's nothing like too much onions. You use as much
03:37onions as you can. Next, we're going to go in with our tomato paste. I'm using half of a tin,
03:45half of the tin can of tomato paste. And I'm going to be using the same measurement for the
03:52pepper mix and give it a good stir. So for the pepper mixture, we use shombor. Shombor is a
04:03thickener. It helps too. It's a kind of pepper too, but it helps to bind everything together.
04:08And you have your wawarodo for spice to give it a little bit of heat. And then you have the
04:13tomato.
04:14Tomato is both sweet and savory. It also binds everything together. And the next thing we're going,
04:19we're going in with our curry, our curry mix.
04:26Everything is coming out nice. I can already smell the bay leaf smell. I can already smell the curry
04:32and the thyme as well. I can already smell the garlic and some of all the spices that mix in
04:37the
04:37pepper mixture as well. Everything is coming out nice, the aroma. While the rice is on the stove,
04:42we take a look at where jollof comes from and what are the jollof wars all about? One factor
04:47contributing to the vast diversity of jollof stems from the movement of the Wolof people across West
04:52Africa. Many countries of the subcontinent have their own methods of preparation and many people
04:58use a variety of spices. But the secret always lies in the type of pepper one uses.
05:04I feel like jollof rides is about for different races and for like, okay, from for Nigerian, for
05:11Ghana, for Senegalese, it's all about our palates. Growing up, everybody has different kind of pepper
05:16mix. For Nigeria, we have our tatashi, we have our shombo, we have our barodo and we have our tomato.
05:23And it's grown on different soil. So the end result is always going to be different.
05:28Jollof is as diverse as Nigeria. Almost every region has its own like coconut jollof,
05:33offada jollof, which is made from offada sauce. Some people use crayfish as a replacement for fish,
05:39which gives it additional flavor. For you to be able to make a good, authentic jollof rice,
05:45you need to cook it for a long time. You need it for you to steam. You need the base
05:50to be perfect.
05:51A perfect base is a perfect jollof rice. A perfect stock water is a perfect jollof rice.
05:57After about 30 to 45 minutes, the jollof rice is ready. It is easy to dish and eat,
06:03so no need to use your hand to dig. But do enjoy with a spoon or fork.
06:08If you're looking for variety and you're looking for something different to give you a kick,
06:13I recommend the Nigerian offada jollof rice. It tastes like no order. You would love it.
06:20Have you ever tried jollof rice? Surely not all the varieties. Then go ahead,
06:25because there's something for everyone. But the ongoing feud between Nigeria and Ghana
06:30regarding whose jollof rice is better may never be resolved. This is known as the jollof wars.
06:38That looks so delicious. Before meeting today's runway stars in top African garments,
06:45let's have a look as to how I spent my morning with Tabo Maghetan, a designer born in Lesotho
06:50and raised in South Africa. It is so lovely to see you. It's great to see you. Now you are
06:56debuting
06:56a new and fresh all sustainable range at the SA Fashion Week. How does it feel and what did the
07:02road
07:02look like to accomplish this milestone? Oh, I am super, super excited. I think more than anything,
07:08I'm looking forward to showcasing my new fabrics that we've produced. We've woven these fabrics
07:13and to showcase that on the ramp. So I mean, there's a lot of butterflies in the stomach.
07:18I haven't done SA Fashion Week for a couple of years. So for me, it's a little bit of a
07:21comeback
07:22moment as well. So then Tabo, who would you say your work is for and why? So really, the woman
07:27that
07:27I'm designing for is the lady who wants to stand out, who wants to stand out in the crowd. And
07:32it's
07:32also multitasking and has to be all these things that society demands, but still looks beautiful and
07:36fabulous in her culture and her heritage. I would love to have a look around your space and hopefully grab
07:42something for later on tonight. Well, let's see what we've got and let's have a look.
07:54This is so cool. And then you can always just have a, if you've got a partner going somewhere,
08:00we can just match. Thank you so much Tabo for inviting me into your space and I cannot wait for
08:06tonight where hopefully I'll be stealing some eyes. Can't wait for it. Thank you. And on that note,
08:11let me get your outfit. Thank you. In Omaruru, Namibia, luxury steel-framed bikes that are crafted
08:18for rugged terrain are turning heads. Meet Zakaria Ngkolu and Dan Craven, who are showcasing their
08:24Namibian craftsmanship that is truly spinning the wheel. This is world-class steel-framed bicycles
08:31made with pride. But does the world really need another bike brand? Well, Zakaria and Dan from Omaruru in
08:40Namibia say yes. Let's find out how they reinvented the wheel. We make everything by hand, not machine,
08:48and check it very well and check again. That is how good the builders of the bicycles are. They can
08:55cut these tubes over and over bicycle after bicycle with a hacksaw and a file and we'll take it to
09:02the
09:02alignment table and measure it within fractions of a millimeter. We focus on the design and I'm feeling very
09:10good. Our bicycle is finished and straight and very strong. This work is unique and I feel proud
09:19to make a quality bicycle. After four years of experimenting and perfecting their frame building,
09:26how does the team in Omaruru make sure all their hard work pays off as they send their four models
09:31into the global market? And what does the Namibian terrain have to do with it?
09:38The one that we launched with, the original gravel model one, is made to be able to enjoy cruising on
09:45tar roads, but when you take it off onto forest paths, jeep tracks, it's just a bicycle that is made
09:53to
09:53just basically make you feel like a little kid again. The holy fire, as we call it, is my ideal
10:01road
10:01bike. It's not a hundred percent focused on racing. It's got a big tire clearance, so you can put on
10:09fatter tires on rough Namibian tar roads or on smoother gravel roads overseas. We recently launched the Loskop,
10:20which is our hardtail mountain bike, and it's built so that you can definitely fit in substantially large
10:28tires. And it's basically a very much an all-day kind of ride. And finally, Napanga is very special
10:39to me because it was designed for where I come from. Our gravel roads might be wide and straight,
10:46but the sandy patches jump out of nowhere and really surprise you. And the skinniness and the bend in the
10:52fork allows it to move a lot and absorb the corrugations. And it's got deep section carbon
10:59fiber wheels with mountain bike tires, which is an unusual look because it's mixing the classical look
11:06and the modern technology. The harsh conditions of the Namib desert have directly influenced the design
11:12of these custom-made two-wheelers. And there are bike enthusiasts all over the world. But who is their
11:18target market? Our objective is to have people who care about design details, about small little things
11:28being just right. To see what we are doing and say, that speaks to me. It's very, very good thing
11:35because our bicycle, we are not selling in just in Namibia. I feel good because we we make Africa
11:45big. This is our first bicycle that's going to Switzerland. This particular customer is a slightly
11:53older gentleman. So he actually wants a gravel bike with flat handlebars. So we're going to have to
12:00change the geometry a little bit and make sure that it fits him in a slightly more upright position.
12:07This is our beautiful head badge. The four initials are the four people involved in the building of this
12:14specific bicycle. This is the 70th bike that the team is producing. But how did Onguza bicycles come
12:20about? I went to two Olympic games. At one time, I was a professional cyclist who'd raced in the most
12:28countries around the world. And the more I traveled, the more I realized how special my home country,
12:34but also my hometown was. People are world-class at using their hands. Where I come from has vibrancy,
12:42has creativity. And the world's perception of us is anything but that. And I have a problem with
12:49that. And that is why we are doing Onguza. Because I know that we can compete with the world's best.
12:58Dan took a frame building course and returned to Omaruru to share his skills with Sakaria and three other
13:05workers whom he grew up with on his parents' farm. And master frame builders helped them refine their
13:11craft and designs. 2018, we were starting getting training, big training. And it was very hard for us
13:22because it was a new thing. Every day, we have learning something through the work, through the process.
13:31Sakaria is one of two senior bike builders who are shareholders in the business. And as he rides the
13:38first bike he built to work, how does he feel? Every day, if I'm coming in the workshop or factory,
13:45I'm feeling very proud. And I like this work because I work like I'm boss here. The work is not
13:54just work,
13:55but it's something that we grow. Innovation is often central to growth. So how does producing parts
14:04locally that were sourced abroad improve Onguza bikes? The threaded parts your bottle cage get
14:12screwed into is now being cut on a lathe here in Omaruru. The dropout your rear wheel slides into
14:19are being made in Vintok. It means that we have more unique parts on the bicycle because they are our
14:26designs. You're not going to see that on anyone else's bicycle. As Onguza gains traction around the
14:30world, it gives hope to the people of Omaruru and the continent. Ten years ago, I was just general
14:38worker in the farm. I was not dreaming about this Kanban. I was not dreaming about to make the bicycle.
14:46I
14:47once said thank you for my small boy, Danny. Yeah. Thank you very much for this idea, this dream.
15:01If you believe in the ability of people from small forgotten places, and if you believe that Africa has
15:10an amazing future, and that if you want something that's as tough as nails, the best place to go and
15:18get that something is from the toughest place. Perhaps Omaruru is the last place you'd expect a
15:23trend-setting bike brand to come from. But that's exactly what Zakaria and Dan have done with their
15:29handmade bicycles. They are literally reinventing the wheel. Tonight's runway will sizzle with top
15:38models and stunning outfits set to captivate fashion enthusiasts. Let's go backstage to find out how
15:45they are feeling before they grace the stage. Mikelange, you're looking absolutely beautiful.
15:51Thank you so much. How do you prepare for a show like this? I don't know, I think just confidence
15:56and just
15:56knowing your word and just killing it on the runway. For a show like this, it's just a lot of
16:02mental
16:03preparation that goes into it, you know, because everything else is sorted out for us. So we just
16:08go and do what we have to do. Absolutely. And boy, do you do it so well. SA Fashion Week,
16:15what influence
16:16or impact does it have on models? Well, with SA Fashion Week, it exposes you a lot to the modeling
16:21industry.
16:22You know, there's so many designers here. And then to get the opportunity to be on a stage like this,
16:27you know, it just, it really warms your heart to be able to broadcast your talent to the world as
16:33well.
16:33Well, all the best. You have articulated your passion and your love for fashion so beautifully.
16:40And I hope that you take that passion onto the stage. Obviously. Thank you so much, Felisa.
16:46Despite the abundance in interior design games on app stores, few are able to translate their virtual
16:52skills into real life success. Amant Le Chweu in Johannesburg has done exactly that. Let's check
16:59out how she's become a DIY queen in her space. Renovating, building and decorating. That's really
17:07exhausting. Why does South African designer Amant Le Chweu really want to do everything herself?
17:13I also make my own curtains. I know what I want. I know what I want to present to clients
17:20and to my
17:21customers. So for me, better what I am able to look at and be able to say, it is what
17:29I believe
17:29that it is. Better what I'm able to then say to you, this is the reason why you spend so
17:35much money
17:35on something that is custom and bespoke to you and your home and your space.
17:43Amant Le Chweu is convinced that she has not only the power, but also the best designs to create
17:50unique spaces, including furnishings. But before we learn how she became a successful renter contractor,
17:56let's have a look at how and why she makes furniture from scratch.
18:01I was playing a game at a restaurant. A friend walked in, saw me playing the game.
18:05And he said, is this what you like to do? I said, this is what I'd like to do one
18:09day.
18:10But I wasn't sure how I wanted to do it. So then he said, OK, I have a house
18:16that I'm in the process of buying. How about you help me with the house?
18:20And that's how it started. It was just me putting together ideas in my mind through a game before
18:28I got the whole works happening. The furniture that I would find on the game was not the furniture
18:34that I wanted or that I could find in South Africa. And I realized, OK, I should be able to
18:40get myself
18:40into the space where I'm able to make the furniture myself and also be able to deliver what I show
18:49people
18:49within the game, within the apps that we use and not work that you see in big retail spaces that
18:54you
18:54find in South Africa. It was this expansion from interior to furniture designer that gave her an
18:59edge over her competitors. But isn't making high quality furniture a lot of hard work? Amantla started
19:06looking for a team of local craftsmen who could actually make the furniture she imagined would best
19:11suit her overall designs. How I found them was trying to search for people that actually understood my
19:17vision that understood what I have in my mind and putting that into a reality. Because you find
19:23people that tell you that they can do something, but then when they do it, it doesn't look the way
19:29you want it to. It doesn't feel the way you want it to. I found that they were very honest
19:33in terms of
19:34pricing. They were very honest in terms of the foam they use, in terms of the material that they use
19:39and the fabrics they use. And they were very patient with me. I'm not a very easy person to deal
19:45with,
19:45but they're extremely patient with me. They understood my vision. We are pretty crazy ourselves.
19:50It's just that we are a little bit limited because we are still young, but the sky is the limit.
19:56But yeah,
19:57I think we like the challenges sometimes because it helps us grow. Making a couch,
20:04especially you need to have pots and wood, fill the pine because it's light. So we get that together
20:14and we put those things together, the wood and the pine. And the next step,
20:19we are getting the saga to cover the pines. And next step is buying the material of the fabric. And
20:31then
20:32we cut our fabric to size according to the frames that we made for stitching. Like here, we are making
20:41this arm. It's been stitched, put together and the foam is there. And then we stitch the cushions,
20:47we put them together and the couch is done.
20:52I've always loved the design space of things. And I always tell people contracting also comes with
20:59designing a space. And to learn and understand what exactly comes into a space before it becomes
21:07beautiful. That got me excited and doing what I wanted to do, which is not just decorating,
21:13but designing and contracting. I've done residential mostly, renovating, interior decorating, interior
21:21designing. And I've recently also in the process of doing a restaurant. So I'm tapping into the commercial space.
21:32I'm a young black woman. Those are three things where in South Africa, it's not easy to be. To convince
21:39people
21:39to give you their hard earned money for you to spend it and not run away with it. But just
21:46being transparent
21:47with your clients. So if you call me at 10pm, I'm always available just to give you that comfort and
21:52ease,
21:53to ease your mind, to believe that I am here to serve you and to make you happy and not
21:59to run away
21:59with your money. Over the years, Amantla has built a successful business with loyal clients that have
22:05come back to her to renovate their other homes and business spaces and referred her to others. What
22:11keeps them coming back? She brought quality. She brought uniqueness of my apartment. Each and every guest,
22:17whenever they walk in into my apartment, the ratings that I get from the Airbnb is like,
22:21where did you get your furniture? And I even referred, here's the number, contact her, you know. So I got
22:26those
22:26ratings as, you know, as the very professional, beautiful, elegant. So I'm very happy with her service.
22:33Whether in construction, renovation, or even building furniture DIY, Amantla Trio shows how hard work pays
22:41off with their stunning living, working and leisure spaces. Now let's meet David Boogie Moley, who transitioned
22:50from being a professional soccer player to a celebrated artist after a knee injury at the tender
22:56age of 23. How did David Boogie Moley manage to jump careers from down for the count pro soccer player
23:03to renowned artists so quickly? I didn't know, you know, if someone like me coming from the background
23:09where I come from, I could be a successful artist. Large-scale graffiti-style portraits of celebrities
23:17are the Manchester resident's hallmark. After he'd only been at it for a year, he'd earned more with
23:22his art than from his entire soccer career, which was ended by a knee injury when he was just 23.
23:28When I first had my injury, I thought, you know, it was going to be quick, that I was going
23:33to
23:33forget about playing after a month, but I didn't know the serious of my injury until we had a scan
23:39and I found out that it was a lot more serious than what I thought it was. David Moley was
23:45born
23:45in 1995 in what is now the Democratic Republic of the Congo. He was 10 when his family moved to
23:51Luton, England. Soon after, he was discovered while playing soccer in the streets. At age 14,
23:58he was picked up by the Liverpool FC Academy. Later, he played for various clubs like Coventry United.
24:04But injuries plagued him along the way, till a cruciate ligament rupture spelled the end.
24:11Many of his one-time fellow players from his nearly 10-year career are supporting his new one.
24:17Top players like Kian Bryan, Jack Grealish, Antonio Rüdiger, Riyad Mahrez and Rhys James commission works from him.
24:30These are pretty much some of the shirts of some of the plays that I've done artwork for.
24:35But how exactly did a pro soccer player get started drawing and painting?
24:43I wasn't going to play forever, so I had to look at it, you know, different directions. So,
24:49yeah, art was pretty much by accident. I just started painting. Well, not even painting, just
24:55drawing on, like, sneakers and trainers. That's pretty much how I started. And then from then on,
25:02it grew and developed into canvas. Boogie Moly spends two to three weeks on each painting.
25:10He starts with the person he's chosen as his subject and a fixed concept with no more than three colours.
25:15The rest comes spontaneously. Whether a star on the pitch or the canvas, Boogie Moly is living proof
25:22of the saying, when one door closes, another opens. If only you believe in yourself.
25:33From SA Fashion Week, we hope you enjoyed today's show.
25:36So, please do hit us up on our social media platforms for more. But until next time, goodbye.
25:42Bye.
25:42Bye.
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