00:052010 World Cup proudly hosted in Africa had a distinct anthem Waka Waka introduced millions
00:15around the world to freshly ground but this is them now it's a lot of pressure because I feel
00:29like we must come with a mega hit song you know everyone must be talking about freshly ground
00:34the way they were talking about before for more than two decades they were one of Africa's most
00:40iconic bands but after the lead singer stepped away to pursue her solo career one question
00:46remained can the band still sound like freshly ground their answer and Bali Makoba a 20-year-old
01:00singer from Cape Town well I'd like to think I brought in a little bit of spice you know and
01:08a
01:08little bit of Gen Z in there you know playful I just bring in some new life in there like
01:14a
01:14a new vibe man you know I am vibing so long before the rehearsals and new releases there
01:28was in me Zama yetu this is where Mbali grew up and when music first took shape it was allowed
01:38to
01:39play it a very huge role in my music taste because I take a little bit of my like a
01:44little bits of
01:45everyone I feed off of everyone it influenced my music in a lot of ways just the diversity now I'm
01:52versatile enough to do anything I could sing jazz for you I could say hip-hop for you I could
01:58say
01:58contemporary African music like in Miriam Makebas because of the place that I grew up in its diversity
02:06but it was also a place she needed to escape and lead guitarist Josh Hawkes helped her do that
02:13yeah I was in a really tough time of my life back then it was really difficult I think at
02:18some point
02:18I was homeless it was just really horrible to the point where he was just like no I just come
02:23over to
02:24my house chill watch a movie just it was cool because he helped me escape a very traumatic reality
02:32of my life it's cool we have a really special bond the heart is trying to find something to hang
02:39on
02:40music became both an escape and a way to imagine something bigger Josh was desperate to find a new
02:46lead singer so he could get the band back together she was still at school she was in the trick
02:53and
02:53then we had a few months where we'd write a couple of songs together to hang out and then I
02:59mentioned
02:59freshly ground to her she actually didn't know who we were when I first mentioned fresh she's like
03:03who's that but once she heard some of the songs she'd oh I know you guys
03:10Josh introduced Mbali to the band and it was an instant hit I said to the guys I think I
03:15might
03:15have found someone who can really do the job you know within three minutes of being in the room of
03:19her singing the guys were like cheap as I care Mbali is incredibly musical she can pick up anything
03:27and play something and she's got huge ears she hears a lot of stuff she writes I'm still pinching
03:35myself am I really in this band like the waka waka my guys do we do because they have done
03:41so much
03:42iconic things I still cannot believe it to this day but the vibe is amazing they're cool guys
03:51she has brought younger sound she has made fresh freshly fresher don't know so we are kind of freshly
04:00fresh you know it captures so much the attention of the younger crowd
04:07joining freshly ground meant stepping into a role many South Africans associate with one person for
04:13almost 20 years the band's front woman was Solani Mahola filling in the shoes of this iconic former
04:21lead singer and it's a lot and I'm just 20 years old it's difficult but I'm having fun with it
04:28that mindset is exactly what the band was looking for Mbali brings her own energy and her own story to
04:37tell you know and she's a fantastic performer she moves beautifully on stage the sound has changed you
04:44know we we still us but Mbali's brought a whole nother aspect to the writing not only can she sing
04:51she's also very gifted at lyrics melody emotion the response to freshly ground return has been
05:03immediate now comes the next test a European tour that will introduce audiences to this new era of
05:09the band you know we started touring Europe in 2006 and now this is 20 years later this is the
05:17biggest tour
05:18we've ever done Bingham Bali's just kept everyone on their toes everyone's quite excited about where
05:25we're at and that we play music again our set list is 50 50 old and new so you still
05:36got songs that
05:36people want to hear we interspersed the sets 20 years ago freshly ground introduced millions of
05:44listeners to a distinctly African sound today they're doing something equally important creating space for
05:50a new voice to be heard and as Mbali Makobai steps onto the world's stages she's not just carrying the
06:01weight of the band's past she's helping shape its future
06:08oh my god what does that hold perfect perfect peter what do you think
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