Get ready to Spring and Braai

Join us this Sunday (26 September 2010) from 12h00 to 18h00 at The Generations Cafe (The G-Spot).

Besides catching up with some of the Bush Radio presenters, staff and volunteers. The G-Spot has organised a strong line-up of local artists like Salome, Carmen Xclusive, N2, The Instrumentals and many more to provide entertainment at the event.

CLICK HERE: Facebook Event Page

Keeping your voice heard (Sentech & Community Radio)

From Bush Radio Managing Director, Brenda Leonard to all listeners and supporters.

You have probably heard the disturbing news that over 60 community radio and some community television stations across South Africa will have their broadcasting services terminated by Sentech due to the arrears owed by these stations. 

I wish to assure our listeners, friends and supporters that, fortunately, Bush Radio will not be one of these stations. We have managed, through loans and the support of the Department of Communications, to pay our fees to Sentech.

However, we still need to continue with these high monthly payments, and we ask you or your organisations, if you can, in whichever way, to support the station.

This crisis faced by community media raises the issue of the impact of the current economic crisis on media, especially community media.

All businesses have been hard-hit, their advertising campaigns have been cut to the bone, leaving community media out of the loop with potential advertisers. The same is true of funders, who have either cut their budgets or changed their funding priorities. 

Community media needs the assistance of government, civil society, the NGO community and business to ensure its survival as a vital service for the upliftment or the various communities they serve.

In the meantime, we ask our listeners, friends and supporters if you have any fundraising ideas, place a comment with your details below, or email ideas@bushradio.co.za . If you would like to make a donation, please see our bank details here.

We thank you for your contribution.

Yours sincerely

Brenda Leonard

Hip Hop won’t stop – Celebrating 10 years of the African Hip Hop Indaba

Bush Radio 89.5 FM will be broadcasting live from the 10th Annual African Hip Hop Indaba dance battles this Saturday the 18th September 2010 at the Good Hope Centre in Cape Town.

As a media sponsor for the event we at Bush Radio hope to bring this event to a larger audience who may not be able to be at the event but through 89.5FM and our online radio stream via www.bushradio.co.za we hope to give everyone a taste of the event.

The event has been organised by the Heal the Hood Project and we have been running several interviews and promos highlighting the importance of the event.

CLICK HERE: Interview by Bush Radio intern, Elias Aba Milki with Tanswell Jansen of Heal the Hood

The Hip Hop Indaba starts on Friday the 17th September 2010 at Club Flatline and continues the Saturday (18 September 2010) at the Good Hope Centre.

Bush Radio’s Shamiel X will host a two-hour special from the venue on Saturday from 6pm to 8pm so tune in if you can’t make it to the Good Hope Centre.

If you would like to buy tickets or more information visit the Facebook page / Computicket or call 021 706 0481 / 082 474 4750.

I write what I like #zamediafreedom

Bush Radio Open letter on Media Freedom and Freedom of Expression

My Kinda Jazz tribute to Robbie Jansen

Robbie Jansen - A tribute

On Saturday night 11 September at 8 o’clock in his regular jazz show, My Kinda Jazz – now in its 5th year – Nigel Vermaas will pay tribute to the late Robbie Jansen, who died from complications arising from emphysema on 7 July 2010. He was 60 years old.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO THE PROMO

To some Robert Edward Jansen was Robbie, to others – especially family – Robert or Mr Rob. To many of the young people here at Bush Radio, he was Uncle Robbie – and he was, of course, also known as the Cape Doctor, the Pied Piper and so on.

This pioneering musician was generous, honest, humble, and politically active, but also a compulsive talker and dedicated to his music – often at the expense of family until the last five years of his life, when his poor health was accompanied by a complete change in lifestyle and attitude.

The tribute, which takes us from The Rockets and Pacific Express via Oswietie to Robbie’s solo career, includes words from fellow musicians such as Errol Dyers and Jack Momple, from friends and family, and also some recordings from the funeral at His People Church on 17 July 2010, with several speakers, including Minister Trevor Manuel.

Nigel is particularly indebted to Akbar Khan, who set up most of the interviews for a video to be shown at an as-yet-unconfirmed memorial concert. Aki is also responsible for supplying the recordings he himself made of Robbie at a UDF rally in 1985.

The two-hour tribute includes some of Robbie’s iconic recordings including Kalahari Thirst and Freedom, Where Have You Been?

Tune into on 89.5fm or online via www.bushradio.co.za

Hamba Kahle Vincent Kolbe

One of the original trustees of Bush Radio 89.5 FM, activist, librarian and musician Vincent Kolbe passed away on Friday the 3 September 2010.

Vincent was instrumental in helping to form the Bush Radio community radio station project and guide it through one of the most challenging periods in the birth of community radio in South Africa.

His contribution to give all the people of South Africa a voice through community radio should never be forgotten and we at Bush Radio have always felt his presence; from his calls to the station just to chat or share programme ideas.

Vince, thank you – we will miss you.

Updated: Read story on Bush Radio News site

Getting through Matric 2010

The 2010 Matric exams are fast approaching and Bush Radio 89.5 FM and the Western Cape Education Department is attempting to ease the stress of matrics through a series of revision programmes which will be aired every Monday and Wednesday evening from 7 to 8pm.

AUDIO: (Click here to listen to the promo)

If you are in Matric or know anyone who is, you owe it to yourself to tune into 89.5FM and listen to the advice and tips in these programmes.

Let’s get through these Matric exams together on 89.5 FM!

The schedule for the Matric Revision Programme 2010 (Mondays and Wednesdays, 7-8pm):

From the archive: Jay Naidoo

In 1997 Bush Radio moved from Queenspark Avenue (where Voice of the Cape is now) to our current premises at 330 Victoria Road. It took a long hard slog to turn the building from an open plan warehouse into broadcasting studios but we managed to do it.

Just after the move we invited the then Minister of Telecommunications, Post and Broadcasting, Jay Naidoo to officially open our studio.

Some info on Jay Naidoo (source: The Just Cause)

Jay Naidoo was the founding General Secretary of the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu), the country’s largest federation of unions, which played a leading role in the struggle for freedom in South Africa. He served two successive terms before forming part of South Africa’s first democratic government. From 1994 to 1999, he was Minister in the President’s Office responsible for the Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) and later Minister of Telecommunications, Post and Broadcasting in Nelson Mandela’s cabinet.