TJ, Author at 1Africa | Page 12 of 18

Big Up Africa: DJ Sbu

Culture

TJ

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March 20, 2015

Very few things beat an inspired idea. How many ideas do we give birth to in our minds each day and yet they never see the light of day? One of the greatest reasons why most people never follow through with the concepts they come up with is fear. Too many of us are afraid of what people might think and how people might receive what we create. So, in the end, we play it safe and either go the route of mediocrity or just never take any action at all.

This week’s Big Up Africa feature highlights a very unique African entrepreneur who, for us anyway, is taking boldness and daring to a whole new level. Sibusiso Leope, commonly known as DJ Sbu, is our main man this week. Known primarily as a broadcaster and entertainer (if you didn’t know, he’s a radio and TV presenter, club DJ, performing artist, author, motivational speaker and founder of a youth in leadership educational services company called Leadership 2020, among other things), he is now a rising phenomenon in the world of business as well. He has launched an energy drink called MoFaya to contend with the heavy hitters like Red Bull and Monster and will now, it is reported, also be getting into the business of bread and toilet paper of all things. Unusual, right? But smart.

Nobody knows what the future holds and how well Nzo Bread and Ntofo Ntofo Toilet Paper will do but it’s exciting to see African entrepreneurs thinking out of the box and going where few think to go. The tendency among African celebs is to copy the Western trend and think that, once you’re up there, the logical next steps can only be perfumes and clothing brands. Though a little odd, it has to be said that to see someone of DJ Sbu’s profile going the route of simple stuff like bread and loo paper is actually quite refreshing.

Here’s to Sbu and young African entrepreneurs who dare to be different!

Who Or What Is The Holy Spirit?

TJ

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March 20, 2015

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Let’s face it. We’ve all seen the portrayals in movies or heard the dramatic stories from friends. Maybe, while attending a church service, we’ve even seen people “under the anointing”, screaming, falling over and shaking violently. When we ask what is causing this, we are told that it is “the power of the Holy Spirit”. So, the next logical thing is to ask: who or what is the Holy Spirit? And why does its appearance – or his appearance, depending on which side of the fence you sit – result in such manic and uncontrollable behavior?

We decided to do a bit of reading and came up with 2 pretty basic but helpful answers. These things seem simple enough but, if you’ve been searching – especially if you’re not clued up about religious jargon – it can provide some useful, preliminary insight.

1. The Holy Spirit is a person, not a ‘thing’ or just a ‘force’

2. The Holy Spirit’s purpose is not to make people fall on the floor or act all crazy. As the video below will show, His existence is for a far greater purpose than that

Taking this to the next level, here’s a great video we came across with some further thoughts on the subject. We hope it will help you. Even if you don’t understand some of the church lingo used, you’ll get the gist of it.

If you find yourself at a place in your life where you are searching for meaning to the deeper issues of faith and want to know more about God, our passion is to walk with you on that journey. Understanding concepts like faith, God and even the Holy Spirit cannot be accomplished just by reading a single article. It’s a journey and we want to walk it with you. Click on the banner below and check out another video that talks about who we are and what we want to share with you.

If you’d like to share with us some of your own thoughts about the Holy Spirit and add to the discussion, feel free to write in our comments section.

Samsung Galaxy S6: Innovation or Imitation?

TJ

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March 19, 2015

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Samsung Galaxy S6: Innovation or Imitation?

In the world of business and commerce, there’s a phrase that’s often used when it comes to assessing the failure or success of a company or enterprise: numbers don’t lie. My layman’s understanding of that is this: you can give all the explanations and press conferences you want to explain situations away when things go south but, if the spreadsheets say you lost money, you probably lost money.

For the last couple of years, Samsung has been a major player in the mobile space and they have gone all out – creating phone models, immediately followed by ‘Mini’, ‘Active’ and ‘Plus’ versions of those phones as a way of saturating the market with their products and making sure all buyer groups are taken care of, thus aiming to cement their place at the top of the food chain. Very few would question that it was the launch of the original Galaxy S, in March 2010, that catapulted Samsung onto the scene as a serious mobile hard-hitter in recent times. However, though hugely popular, the Galaxy S was dismissed by many as nothing more than an attempt to copy the iPhone. In 2012, the Galaxy S3 came out and was able to shake off any ‘iPhone wannabe’ criticism as it took a totally different design direction, both in terms of hardware and software. To this day, it is still widely believed that the S3 is the best phone Samsung ever came out with.

Enter 2015 and the sixth generation member of the Galaxy S family has come to town. It does so on the back of Samsung’s mobile division having seen its yearly profit fall by over 40 percent over the course of 2014. To be blunt, after getting lukewarm reception for its S4 and S5 releases, the S6 had to be big. And boy is it a design overhaul! Here are the standout features of Samsung’s new flagship in all its glory:

5.1″ QHD (1440 x 2560) resolution Super AMOLED screen, a staggering 577 pixels per inch
Screen made of Corning Gorilla Glass 4 technology
Premium glass and metal design. Goodbye plastic
Octa core (read: very fast) processor, 3GB of RAM
2,550mAh battery
Android 5.0.2 Lollipop with Samsung’s own software skin, TouchWiz
16MP camera capable of 4K video recording, LED flash, optical image stabilization (OIS)
5MP front-facing camera capable of 1080p video recording
Built-in storage (32/64/128 GB). No expandable storage
Wireless charging
Fingerprint scanner
Heart-rate sensor

With all these goodies on board, it’s pretty obvious that the S6 is built for the kill.

What’s to like about the S6? Those that like it say: thank you for finally getting rid of the cheap, plasticky feel. Plastic never belonged on a flagship phone to begin with. The screen is amazing and the 577 ppi QHD resolution screen is to die for. The pared-down TouchWiz is definitely a plus and will give users room to experience Android more than before when it was drowned in Samsung ‘bloatware’.

What’s not so cool about the S6? The loss of expandable storage in the form of a microSD slot is something many users may lament, especially because premiums for upgrading memory may be quite high for consumers. Water and dust protection are also out the window this time round. There are some murmurings that elements of the new phone’s design – namely the glass and metal design – are imitations of the Apple’s and Sony’s top tier phones. It looks like the rivalry between Apple and Samsung is a long way from over and the two won’t be playing nice anytime soon.

So, what is your view? Is the Samsung Galaxy S6 a huge design breakthrough and a show of guts and innovation from Samsung? Or is it another attempt to copy other phone makers in a desperate attempt to claw their way to the top after a dismal 2014?

We’d love to hear your thoughts. Please drop a comment in the box below.

Looking for a full-length, detailed review? Check this out.

On The Lighter Side: Tokoloshe Prank

TJ

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March 18, 2015

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Trying to figure out the realm of the supernatural is one of the most fascinating and downright creepy things about life on earth. I’ve heard people say that Africans are the most superstitious people in the world but I don’t think it’s true. Stories of ghosts, ghouls, sorcerers and spirits exist all over the world and aren’t exclusive to Africa. Obsession with the otherworldly is universal, as far as I’m concerned. Coming to Africa, though, I’ve seen some unbelievably dramatic reactions when talk of foul spirits and witches comes up. On today’s Lighter Side feature, we show you a pretty funny tokoloshe prank video from some fellas calling themselves “Theboys Africa”, illustrating to us just how much people can be terrified of the spirit realm. What is a tokoloshe, you ask me. Watch the vid and all will be explained!

Why Do We Hate God So Much?

TJ

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March 16, 2015

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A colleague of mine shared with me an amazing quote from rising hip-hop artist, Andy Mineo. For those who may not know him, Mineo belongs to a new generation of hip-hop artists who are sharpening their art, infiltrating the mainstream and are passionate about sharing their faith within that context. In other words, they refuse to be boxed and referred to as ‘Christian rappers’ but simply as rappers who will not hide who and what they believe in as they engage the industry.

Anyway, Andy Mineo said this on Facebook:

A pastor friend of mine once told me “I should have the easiest job in the world. I tell people about a God who made them, who knows every dark secret about them and yet loves them, who pursues them even when they’re disobedient, who takes the punishment for their wrongs, who desires the best for them & wants to have a relationship with them that will satisfy their deepest longings.” Yet we run from Him like the plague. Recently I’ve asked myself this question. “Why is it so hard to love such a lovable God?” There is nothing wrong with Him. There is something deeply wrong with us.

Reading this made me realize that life is full of so many contradictions. Probably the greatest of all contradictions – at least in my view anyway – is me. Us. Humans. We oftentimes love what we shouldn’t and shun what we should love. Why do we do that? There seems to be something rebellious and almost self-destructive in us that pulls us towards what is likely to swallow us up in the end.

Anyone who has ever read the Bible will know that it is a book that is full of promises and loaded with the expression of God’s love for humanity. Yet, it is amazing how society is slowly but surely doing all to turn away from God and shut Him out of everything that matters.

What’s your take on this? Do you agree that most of what we do and the decisions we make as people communicate the hatred of God?

On the flipside, if you are on a journey of faith where you want to stop ‘running’ from God and are interested to know more about God and even discover a relationship with Him, please click on the link below and watch the video that follows.

Big Up Africa: AB De Villiers

TJ

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March 13, 2015

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One sport that is quietly but steadily gaining popularity on the African continent is cricket. Often referred to as the gentlemen’s game, cricket can be highly fascinating to watch, especially in its short limited overs format. Without a question, the top cricket nation in Africa at the moment is South Africa. At the time of writing, the Proteas – as the senior national men’s team is known – have made it through to the quarter-finals of the ICC Cricket World Cup and are poised to be at the top of the pile.

One man who has been instrumental in the success of the team is Abraham Benjamin de Villiers, more commonly referred to as “AB”. De Villiers is captain of the South African One Day International squad and is arguably the best batsman in the world at the moment. Among his many batting achievements currently are records for the fastest 50, 100 and 150 runs in One Day Internationals. The second of these – the one for the fastest 100 (century, in the sport’s jargon) – was achieved as recently as January 2015 against the West Indies. Known for being incredibly gutsy, focused and creative, AB is our choice for today’s Big Up Africa feature. Our hats go off to this amazing sportsman for making his country and the entire continent proud. Here’s to shattering many more records!

Flabba’s Death: 3 Universal Lessons

TJ

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March 11, 2015

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The South African – and, by extension, African – hip-hop scene lost one of its big names this week when Flabba (real name Nkululeko Habedi) was stabbed to death, allegedly by his girlfriend in the early hours of Monday 9 March. Strangely enough, just last week I watched a full interview Flabba did with producer Arthur Mafokate on a show called Sessions on news channel ANN7. It was pretty shocking to me when I walked into the 1Africa office on Monday and heard from one of my colleagues that he’d been murdered.

Two specific things have inspired this post. Firstly, we at 1Africa unashamedly look at everything through a very specific lens – the lens of faith in God. Secondly, today is the day when friends, family and fans of Flabba will gather for a memorial service to celebrate the life of the fallen rapper. What better day then to think about deeper matters and use this terrible tragedy as something for personal reflection. Here are three lessons we can all learn from this immensely tragic event:

1) Human emotion is necessary but can be very problematic. We have been given emotions for a reason. Without emotion, we cannot fall in love, be inspired to write music or poetry and, without it, we cannot be spurred onto action to pursue our dreams. At the same time, human emotions can run high to the point of being destructive and dangerously so. The dark side of human emotion – hate, jealousy, greed, selfishness – is responsible for much of the destruction we see around us. Most times we think we’re better than or above other people and we say, “Oh, I’d never do that. Me? Never”. But when was the last time you really thought about what you’re capable of?

2) We are limited in what we can know. The reality of life is such that we can’t know everything and we can’t be everywhere. Much as fans, friends and family will want to know every detail of what happened to Flabba, we will never truly know because we weren’t there. The only people who will ever know are those who were there. Even then, we may never know the real truth because humans narrate stories based upon agendas and worldviews. Is it entirely possible for us to be neutral?

3) Life will always throw curve-balls at us. This is something very interesting but difficult to accept about life. As a star is on the rise and is set to shine brightest, it is snuffed out. I’ve always found it odd that when I think I’ve figured things out, something comes round the bend and surprises or even shocks me. The lesson I learn from this is that we should never hold onto things too tightly. Though it’s hard to do it, we just have to come to terms with the fact that we don’t control everything. That should lead us to be humble.

In moments like these, I remember the wisdom of a fast disappearing generation of old magogos (grandmothers) and elders who taught us a simple message as we grew up: that we should always pray and that we should always be grateful. Our new generation seems to think this old wisdom is laughable. We think we can do it on our own. But perhaps we should use moments like this dark one to reflect and do so seriously. If you’re reading this and want to know more about faith and want to make some life-changing decisions and realignments of your own, please click on the banner below and watch the video we want to share with you.

#RIPFlabba

Learning To Love Yourself

TJ

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March 6, 2015

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Anyone who’s ever driven on the roads of South Africa will know what it feels like to contend with the drama that comes from sharing the space with a special group of people called taxi drivers. Most of them (not all, lest I be guilty of generalizing) feel they can do what they want, change lanes when they want to and sometimes go through traffic lights, regardless of what colour is showing. Having had the opportunity to drive in Zimbabwe, Kenya, Uganda and Nigeria, I can safely say that the story is similar in those countries too.

A couple of years ago, while championing a major operation to ensure and improve good road practices and safety on the highways, I heard the then South African Minister of Transport, S’bu Ndebele, criticize the behaviour of taxi drivers and blame it on their low self-esteem. I found the statement to be outrageously funny at the time and didn’t quite understand what he meant. Well, years have gone by now and I think I have made sense of what he may have been talking about: a great number of our actions, good or bad, are influenced by the way we see ourselves.

During a recent campaign, the 1Africa team came across an organization that taught us a new term which is probably really appropriate for this post: ‘acting out behaviours’. It’s quite possible that when we have been hurt or have not come to a place of fully accepting ourselves, we do certain things either as a way of getting the attention we need or expressing the frustration we feel that we don’t have that attention.

If you often find yourself doing certain things that seem ‘weird’ even to you, maybe it’s time for a reality check. You may realize that you don’t appreciate yourself and love yourself as much you should.

Why is it important to love yourself? Doesn’t that end up just promoting egocentric living? The answer is no. If we have a positive esteem of ourselves, it makes us far better able to extend love to others in an equally healthy way. You can’t give what you don’t have within you to give.

The foundation of true, healthy ‘self-love’ is in understanding that we are loved by a Creator who has always been willing to tell us, in various ways, that we are loved. By embracing this unconditional love that he has to offer us, we realize who we are and the value we have and we, in turn, can love others. That’s how it’s supposed to work. We’d love for you to make a decision to accept this love and know it for yourself. One way you can do so right here is to click on the banner below.

You are a masterpiece and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.

Why It’s Pointless To Blame Others

TJ

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March 2, 2015

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There’s nothing in this world easier than finding someone or something to blame when things go wrong. The emotionally distant man chooses to blame his parents who never hugged him enough; the soccer fan chooses to blame the coach who should have substituted this striker with the other one. On a bigger scale, leaders of whole nations choose to keep blaming other nations for their problems today.

I’m not saying that very terrible things don’t happen to us in life. They do. A lot of the time, because of the sheer reality of the ugly side of human nature, things really do happen to us not because we have done anything wrong but because someone else has decided, for whatever reason, to do them to us. That’s just life. Yet, more and more, I have come to realize that the people we spend our time blaming and being bitter towards are getting on with their lives, doing what they need to be doing and not even giving a second thought to us or what we’re worried about.

Recently, I had the opportunity to gain some new perspective on this whole thing. Many people give excuses for why they do not progress and blame circumstances for why they don’t do the right thing. But, while that is going on, there is always someone somewhere else who is in a far worse situation but who makes a decision to take responsibility, roll up his sleeves and get on with making the most of life. It’s all a matter of our attitude towards the things that happen to us. Think about it. There are countless people who have gone through shocking adversity but have bounced back to reach heights that they themselves never would have imagined! Perhaps, difficult as it might be, we need to consider that when we fail to progress, it’s more about attitude and an unwillingness to do the extremely dirty and grimy work of getting back on our feet than about the original injustice, whatever it may have been.

Today, I choose to make this matter personal. Maybe if I work on my attitude & stop playing the blame game in my own life, it might infect you & you can infect someone else and so on and so on. Who knows where we’ll end up if we all take responsibility and steer clear of the pointless road of blaming others?

One of the greatest role models, as far as taking responsibility for his own life in spite of others hurting him, is Jesus Christ. No matter how insulted he may have felt, he recognized that he couldn’t lose sight of his life’s mission. Not only did he look past the evil he suffered, he went further and forgave and even loved those who wounded him. How about choosing this worldview for yourself as it brings peace and will release you from carrying unnecessary grudges which, in the end, will destroy nobody but you. Please click on the banner below and watch the video that follows.

Big Up Africa: Makmende

Culture

TJ

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February 27, 2015

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Anyone who knows anything about internet trends will know that memes are all the rage these days. Life moments, captured in a frame, are then transformed into hilarious images with text added to them. You can be having the worst day ever but all it takes is just the right meme to change all that. Yay memes!

So, we’re all crazy about memes but what does that word even mean? Well, for all the definition geeks like me out there (holler!), according to Webster’s Dictionary, a meme is “an idea, behavior, or style that spreads from person to person within a culture”. While studying the spread of cultural information within society, scientist Richard Dawkins coined the word back in 1976.

On Big Up Africa today, we dig deep into the archives of recent internet history to celebrate our very own original African fictional superhero meme, Makmende. Makmende is a guy who can do pretty much anything. With Afro, slick shades, major blingage and bell bottoms like you’ve never seen them, I guess we could call him our own Chuck Norris. He’s just a thousand times cooler. Makmende means “hero” in Swahili slang and came from “a mispronunciation of a phrase spoken by Dirty Harry, played by Clint Eastwood, “Go ahead, make my day” (Mek ma nday) from the 1983 movie Sudden Impact.” As it turns out, whenever a tough guy wannabe would try to look tough on the streets of Nairobi, people would say to him, “”Who do you think you are? Makmende?” Anyone who thought they could do the impossible or a particularly difficult task was always asked whether they thought they were Makmende, since only Makmende could do or attempt to do the impossible.”

Check out Makmende doing his thang in this music video by Kenyan music supergroup Just A Band (who, by the way, deserve their own Big Up Africa feature for popularizing Makmende and just being so cool)

(Quoted material: Wikipedia)

TJ

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