Tag: Idols South Africa

Meet your #IdolsSA top 11

The #IdolsSA top 11 has been announced. The eleven hopefuls were announced during Sunday night’s live show on M-Net and Mzansi Magic. They will be vying for the Idols season ten title in the next couple of weeks. I must admit I’m a bit shocked by one of the top 11 (I won’t reveal who the person is) but it’s what the fans wanted, so who am I to question. Here are the eleven Idols finalists:

Vincent Verhoog (25)
Ivan Roux (24)
Bongi Silinda (23)
London Louw (24)
Vincent Bones (29)
Kyle Deutschmann (27)
Lize Mynhardt (21)
Musa Mashiane (24)
Tumi Morobane (21)
Demi Lee (24)
Roxy McVean (20)

Who stands out for you at this stage?

Idols Top 8 boys song choices

The Top 08 boys, image 02
So earlier this week, the names of the top 16 Idols contestants were announced. For the most part, everyone is happy but the noticeable absence of the twins has caused quite a stir. Alas, the decision has been made and I don’t foresee any changes being made. So forward we go… On Sunday viewers will get to see the guys on stage and if you’re wondering what they’ll be singing, then check out the list below:
BENJAMIN TAINTON (19) – Avicii’s mega-hit “Wake Me Up.
Big song… No pressure!

BRENDEN LEDWABA (19) – Rihanna’s “Stay”.
If he nails this one, he might just secure his place in the top 5 and more.

INNOCENT MABUSHE (27) – Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky”. 
Fun song. It seems easy, but I don’t think it’s as easy as it appears. This will be interesting.

JONATHAN ‘JONO’ JOHANSEN (16)- The Script’s “Millionaires”.
Fun, pop song. It’s kinda safe… my opinion.

LEE-RON MALGAS (18) Eric Benet’s “Harriet Jones”.
I don’t know the song, but I dig him and I think his interpretation of the song will be a good one.

MAKHOSONKE “SONKE” MAZIBUKO (21) – Rihanna’s “Diamonds”.
Big song, it’ll get people singing along… Lets hope their voices don’t drown his voice out 😉
PHILIP DUBE (20) – R. Kelly’s “Believe In Me”.
Always a popular artist to sing. I’m looking forward to this one.
MUSA SUKWENE (26) – Chris Brown’s “Don’t Judge Me”.

Love this song… Lets see how Musa does.
Those are my thoughts. What do you think? Don’t forget you can see all the interviews, videos and a lot more news on the official site.
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John Legend press conference – video highlights

One of my favourite artists is back in South Africa. If you don’t know who I’m talking about, it’s Mr. John Legend. The star will perform at a Women’s Day Concert, alongside Unathi Msengana and MiCasa at the Sandton Convention Centre tomorrow night. Holding down the MC duties will be the lovely Minnie Dlamini. If you haven’t got your tickets, askies, shem. You can catch him on Idols on Sunday evening then.
Earlier I went through to a press conference with the star. He’d just arrived in the country, so naturally he was a little tired. We were therefore limited to 15 questions (give or take) and a total of 13 minutes according to my video footage. So it wasn’t long at all, but we did get to hear about his new album, his Women’s Day message, on being back in SA and more. Check out some of the highlights from the presser earlier. I’ll have more on his and Unathi’s thoughts on being involved with SA Idol on Monday, so stay tuned for that.

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Josslyn or Kerry, who will make the Idols Top 15?

What would Idols be without a little bit of a twist and some drama? No I’m not talking about Prime Zulu’s ‘Snot en Trane’ during last night’s show. I’m talking about the fact that there is currently a top 14 and as of Sunday we’ll know who between Josslyn Hlenti and Kerry Sanssoucie will make it a Top 15. During the (let’s be honest the rather painful, drawn out) hour and half broadcast last night, the judges told the two hopefuls that they couldn’t decide who was good enough to go through to the next round. So they’re leaving it up to South Africa to decide who will be there. “Hell Week” continues for Kerry and Josslyn.

I feel sorry for them. They’re both very strong, very good and actually they could be the finalists if we fast tracked to the final of this show. Alas, that isn’t going to happen I guess. So here’s what the vibe is. You have until 10pm tonight to vote for your favourite contestant. Here are the voting details:

To vote JOSSLYNN HLENTI into the Top 15, text the letter A to 37400.

To vote for KERRY SANSSOUCIE, text the letter B to 37400. Or vote for either Idol on MXit.

(SMSs cost R1,60. VAS rates apply and no free SMSs are allowed. 20 Moola per MXit vote.)

They both have interesting back stories, but I’m swaying more to Kerry’s at this point. Let’s see what happens next week then.

In the mean time, here are the other names already in the top 14: Continue reading “Josslyn or Kerry, who will make the Idols Top 15?”

My Idols favourites so far

The new season of Idols is well underway now. I must admit I tend to agree with judge Gareth Cliff when he said Polokwane lacked a bit of talent. There were a few hopefuls I liked but for the most part they weren’t great. So when I watched the beginning of the show last night, I thought to myself oh boy Durban, where did all your talent go? Well that was until some of these contestants showed up. First up you can see Jonathan Grayston (pictured above), who still gives me goosebumps! Yoh, what a pleasant surprise. Kid is amazeballs! Watch his audition here.

Prime Zulu entered the competition last year. When he sang I was sold, so were the judges. Unfortunately he didn’t last very long in the top 100. He’s now back and he has a second chance. I still think he’s got the goods to make it big. Plus his version of Beyonce’s Hello was touching. Watch his audition and let me know what you think.

16-year-old Shekhinah Donnell has a good back story. The young starlet shared her story about being adopted when she was younger. Her father encouraged her to enter the competition and boy did it pay off.

She blew every one of the judges away with her version of crack is whack Amy Winehouse’s song Rehab. She even got a hug from the normally cold-as-ice Randall Abrahams. Watch her audition now.

Another youngster who performed really nicely was Josslynn Hlenti. The 20-year-old PA entered in the hopes of hitting it big and making enough money to improve both her and her family’s lifestyle. I’ve seen her before but I can’t quite seem to place hey. Anyone who can help, that would be rad! A few other names to watch out for: Erin Fourie, Phillip Du Plessis, Sibusiswe Jali and according to the judges Melissa Allison too. This girl you might recognise from another reality show called High School Musical: Spotlight South Africa.

Some people you wont fortunately or unfortunately get to see too much of:

Kurt’s biggest critic Zandrie. “He doesnt haf da punch dat more English songs have for me.” Needless to say she had Unathi in tears- and I’m sure many others around the country.

Reece Jude Morgan. His dress sense is enough to make you LOL all over the place 😉 There was a girl who was told to show off her ‘range’ by removing her clothes. Her name is Paige and she wasn’t the ugliest person I’ve ever seen in my life 😉 We could see her again.

I’m told the Joburg auditions this weekend are just as good as the Durban ones. Tune in this Sunday at 17:30 on M-Net, channel 101 on DStv.

Unathi is the new Idols judge


Out with the old (no disrespect intended) and in with the new. Metro FM DJ, TV presenter, mother, wife and singer Unathi Msengana is the new Idols Judge. This morning when the news broke that Mara would no longer be on the judging panel when the seventh season rolls around later this year, names started flying as to who would be the new judge. Some on my list included:

Khanyi Mbau- for the fame game. She’d show contestants how to deal with fame and grow their brands.
Lira- because she’s one of the best vocalists in South Africa.
KB- same as Lira and she understands the industry.
Dineo Ranaka- YFm DJ. Besides being a beautiful woman, she’s talented and knows the business

I also said Unathi, and I will claim it. Here’s my Tweet to her:
“@unathimsengana Friend of mine…. you would be good as an @IdolsSA judge too. Would you do it if they approached you?”

And BAM… the news broke. I think this is good news for the show. She’s knows her stuff. She’s a big name in the business! On being announced as a judge, she said, “I’ll be searching for an incredible vocalist and passionate performer who South Africa will fall in love with. The beautiful thing about pop is its encompassing nature, so I’m looking for an individual who is confident in exploring a universal musical landscape. Good luck to this year’s contestants!”

Big up and congrats to Unathi!

Idols Top 9- who’s going home tonight?


So tonight another Idols hopeful gets chopped from the line-up, but the question is who will it be? It’s going to be an interesting night, but I think the person who might be going home will be…. Pieter West. Sorry, but I don’t think he was strong enough on Sunday when he performed Seal’s version of ‘Knock On Wood’. I don’t know, that’s my opinion, but check out his video here and let me know if you agree or not. Who will be in the bottom three besides Mr West? Well I’m going to go with Jamie-Lee and Jess.

I can’t wait to see Tamara Dey and the rest of the Flash Republic playing their new song later too! Honestly, Tamara is one of the best performers I have ever seen on stage. She’s entertaining, commanding and energetic. True superstar!

Idols Top 10: Song choices

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It’s gonna be an interesting week for the Top 10. Elvis Blue has a random, but fun song choice. Sindi and Boki have picked well I feel, as has Jess and Jamie-Lee.

Idols Top 14: Group 2 song choices

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Here are the song choices of the second group of seven in this year’s Idols competition. There are some good choices and some really difficult ones… let’s see how they get on!

And while we gear up for the second spectacular on Sunday night, two of this week’s group will be going home. Who do you think was good, fantastic or not quite up to scratch? It’s weird, everyone the judges liked, I disagreed and my Twitter followers seemed to agree. As much as it pains me to say this, I think Boki might be in trouble which is sad! I really enjoyed his performance! I think the other contestant who could be on his way out is Peter G. I appreciate the fact that he pushed a contemporary song, but a dance number is really difficult. So I feel he might be in trouble tonight. Let’s see when the live show goes out at 7pm tonight on M-Net!