What’s good homie …. How are you living?

All good my man, just Doing me…

They say comedians are the new rock stars…. What do you have to say about that?

We pack up venues my man with no instruments or props…just one mic.

You must be happy with the country’s sometime hilarious state what with Malema’s never-ending sagas, ET etc ….. SA is kind to you comedians …. What do you say?

Ow fo sho…as long we still have Julius singing, people touching each other on their studios and bloody agents getting kicked out…we will never run out of material. So tell the Honchos a little bit about yourself …. Where do you come from and what were you doing before becoming a comedian?

I come from a small town called King William’s Town in Eastern Cape. Growing up I always thought there’s a bigger world out there to explore than chill in E.C. After matric I went to study at the Cape Technikon in cape town…thats before they changed it to CPUT…Central Prison of…lol just kidding. Can you believe I started with retail Management first…realized middle of the year that this was not me. The next year I changed to Graphic design. I went on to work as an Art director at one of South Africa’s recognized Ad agencies called The Jupiter Drawing Room.

And how did you eventually end up being a comedian …. It must have been a giant leap of faith???

Dude it was all about a cellphone…a Nokia 3310 joe!! In my second year at tech Vodacom Campus Tour came through with a lunch hour Comedy show. There were three comedians performing and before they introduced the last guy the host was like “We need three people who think they’re funny. you have two minutes to make us laugh and every second counts. You stand a chance to win a cellphone”. My boy Molete Mathaba was like yo dude go you’re funny. I was like Heelll Nooo!! Dude jumped up cause he used to go to comedy workshops held by Cape Comedy Collectives back then. He did well, meanwhile I’m sitting there thinking I can do that. Second guy jumps for the stage and he gets booed off stage. I didnt think about it I just went for it not even knowing what I was going to do. they were flowing with me but I ran out of time and my Boy won the phone that day. From that moment I vowed that when they come back again the next year I’ll be prepared and I will win that phone…and I did. Then comedian Cokey Falkow invited me to come do open mic at the celebrated Armchair theatre…and the rest is History dude.

What was your first official gig and how did it go?

The Barnyard Comedy Festival that was organized by Comedian Kurt Schoonraad who first saw me at the Armchair Theatre. This went around three Cities and we started in Durban. I remember first night dude I was so nervous,from performing for +60 people at the Armchair to +500 people. Stuart Taylor was hosting it,then Dave Livensohn,me and Kurt closed it. I was supposed to do 15 min…I think I did 7min cause I was so nervous I rushed through my set so fast. Of cause complaints come through about me and I felt like sh*t dude,like I let these dudes down.But they were so cool about it and sat me down,went through my stuff and I learnt something that day cause Dave was like “Ndumiso you’ve got it..relax, just speak slow. If you feel like things are not going your way don’t rush,just slow down and they will catch on wit you…and keep the mic on your chin”. The next day I KILLED IT!! Damn!!

You were initially based in Cape Town and moved to JHB recently… how was the CPT comedy scene and how did it prepare you for the much bigger Jozi scene?

What I liked about the Cape Town comedy scene is that whole thing of comics supporting each other. Older Comics supporting young comics. I have to say the Jo’burg scene is divided,kinder like the East and West side story. But I work with whoever wants to work with me. Also When I started out I performed mostly for a white audience in Cape Town. Then when I started playing Jo’burg I got introduced to the middle class black audience. Now you can put me anywhere I will crack that audience up because comedy should not be about wether you’re black or white…it should be about laughter.

How would you describe your style of comedy ….. What can people who have never been to one of your shows expect?

My style is very observational,stuff people take for granted. I like to make comparisons between the races we have because I believe we’re still in a process of knowing each other in this country. We do things differently,ever notice how white people can have a snake as a pet and with black peeps that is associated with whichcraft, we find out you have a snake your house will be on fire.

How would you compare the local comedy scene to that of the States …. Do you think you’d be able to cut it out there?

I think over the years S.A comedy has matured to international standards. How we can take our stories and make them internationally relevant. I recently performed with Capone a comic from New York(check his Def Jam comedy performance on youtube). He was so amazed by my performance and he kept singing the Zulu song I do as a joke and he would crack up laughing. It really meant a lot to me when he said I would do well in New York. So I guess I should get my Visa ready…

You’ve worked with a number of local comedians …. Which guys do you look up to and why?

Riaad Moosa …his timing,delivery and performance on stage is outstanding. He’s the kinder comic that makes you wish you thought of that joke first. David Kau because he’s material is always current. Cape Comedians really made me who I am today. From Cokey Falkow,Kurt, Stuart Taylor,Dave Livensohn and Mark Lottering. I know these guys are a phone call away if I want an advice.

Please fill in the following:

Joburg is filled with possibilities.

My favourite qualities in a woman are her Smile, sense of humor and personality.

My life ambition is to show my nephew and Niece…uhm guys from back home that anything is possible if you Dream Big.

Julius Malema should not sing shosholoza…the Gautrain will crash.

Bafana Bafana are going to surprise everyone like the Karate Kid.

How do you Live Progressively?

I Pray a lot, set goals, go for what I want and Believe. I always say I’m a Dreamer and one day I’ll wake up and realize I’ve been living my dreams…so I like it when they keep telling me to dream on.

Eastern Cape-born and Free State-raised Sikhulolo Maliwa has morphed into one of the country’s most respected house DJs. Going by the name of LuloCafe, he has penetrated a saturated market with a music style and sound that reflects his love for soulful music.The debonair fella who also dabbles as a brand ambassador for Head Honcho took some time to answer some of our questions. Check out the interview below:

How you doing homie?

Im doing good man, jus making sure things happen…

Where are you from?

I was born in the Eastern Cape in former Transkei but grew up in Sasolburg Free State/Vaal Region…

What are your musical influences?

Well…I grew up in a family that was very reserved so we were never that close but we all shared a special bond through music…I also have a vast interest in music, I began the industry working in retail (CD shops) from Bloemfontein where the biggest selling genre is Afrikaans, Afro Jazz & Techno music to Jozi where the genres spread thru to music from indigenous countries to a rare selection of music for die hard fans.

I had a 5 month glimpse at the radio industry when I had a show at a campus station, I’ve worked in the corporate part of music where I had a zoom into the legalities of the music industry as a whole, I worked within a music creating environment (record label) which introduced me to platforms in which music can be profitable…so my influences are from different music genres which I personally own in ma collection and the business of music plays a fair role as well…

You seem to also have a love for hip-hop, where does this stem from?

Apart from my vast love for music in general….well hip hop for me back then was more like how I feel about house music now…I lived it, I was an emcee, I embraced the lifestyle, but back then it was different, it was strictly about keeping it real.

I still love hip hop right now, but my decision to drop the dream was personal, I had a partner emcee which I began writing scripts with and began recording some material…but I moved away after Matric and just as we were planning to bring it back harder he got stabbed to death in a fight with stereotypes who obviously hated the culture…so my activism in hip hop died then…the movement is still there and is strong, I dig that…

Yeah, so you got a book of rhymes?

Hahahahaha….ammm yeah actually I do bump into a few of my scripts when Im at the folk’s house…but most of them are at ma deceased partner’s house….his mom has asked me to come check them out but I’ve been avoiding it for a year…

Your project had a major hit with ‘Pure Surprise’… When can we expect your next project?

Yeah damn…to be honest I didn’t expect what happened with the track it just blew right in front of my eyes and I had to play catch up…the next project is due for release around April…

Will we finally get to hear you sing on this project?

LOL…hayi I don’t know…Im not so confident…but I’ve recorded 1 track….I love music but I’m not a performer

What made you take interest in the Head Honcho brand?

I loved what it stood for “Live Progressively”…and im very non-conventional so I saw it as an opportunity to grow with a fresh brand…

Has it influenced you in anyway?

Hehehehehe…its silly how it kinda brought me back into hip hop and the lifestyle…but more than anything marks the birth of a new street movement…a unity of house music lovers, hip hop cats and peeps who love the entertainment industry as a whole…We only do the bigger picture in here!!!

If you were a gate-keeper/record label exec, how would you influence

your field?

You know in the previous question I speak of the bigger picture cause I see that’s not the case in this country regarding the success of the music industry *maybe im wrong*…for me I see an industry that grows with knowledge of the business being passed on to artists etc.

I always say the more success stories we get in our country the more weight we will carry throughout the world…so I see an empire of empowered music lovers who are in light of the massive opportunities this industry carries

Where will the Lulo Cafe brand be in 12months?

The focus this year is to introduce my musicality by doing my own productions, by placing the brand in different platforms of the industry still maintaining its roots but once again to succeed with the unexpected…So there will be a series of surprises this year. I don’t do conventional stuff; whether that’s detrimental or not it’s up to how I present my package to the market…we have an amazing market in this country that is appreciative of fresh creativity and hard work…