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The coronavirus is affecting people from all spheres of life – this was evident when Gauteng-based singer, studio manager and music promotions manager Tshepo Manyisa had to pack his bags and come back home to Vhembe District.
Speaking from Shayandima outside Thohoyandou on Monday, Manyisa said that the spread of the coronavirus had affected everyone, with the music industry not being the exception.
“I had shows on 25 March in England, but then they were all cancelled,” he said. “I also had several gigs at some schools where my artists and I would sing and motivate learners to stick to education. Hundreds of learners would sit down on the soccer fields or tennis courts and we would perform for them as part of our job, but now we are unable to do so.”
He said that no shows have taken place at all since the schools, taverns and public facilities were all closed up for larger gatherings. “No shows, no money to feed the family,” he said.
He said that he had no choice but to stick to Pres Cyril Ramaphosa's shutdown, which has been put in place as a means of flattening the Covid-19 curve. “I love my people as much as I do myself,” he said. “So, I cannot say that we should bring people together, so that we can perform for them amid this coronavirus crisis.”
Manyisa's passion for music started at a very young age and eventually led him to Johannesburg, where he opened a music stable, Manyisa Records, which manages artists, hosts shows, and provides music and dance services.
“We are all praying to God to heal our land, so that everything can get back to normal,” he concluded. “I am sending a positive message of comfort and strength to all those who are infected with Covid-19 and their families,” he concluded.
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Tshepo Manyisa. Picture supplied.
By: Tshifhiwa Mukwevho
Tshifhiwa Given Mukwevho was born in 1984 in Madombidzha village, not far from Louis Trichardt in the Limpopo Province. After submitting articles for roughly a year for Limpopo Mirror's youth supplement, Makoya, he started writing for the main newspaper. He is a prolific writer who published his first book, titled A Traumatic Revenge in 2011. It focusses on life on the street and how to survive amidst poverty. His second book titled The Violent Gestures of Life was published in 2014.
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