Head Honcho’s new winter range as modeled by our ambassadors Teko Modise, Lulo Cafe, AKA, DJ Speedsta, DJ Fanatic & DJ Franky. Available at SHESHA and select SPORTSCENE stores.

The organisers of the 2012 MTN SAMAs finally announced the nominees for this year’s edition of the prestigious awards. The likes of Zahara & MiCasa walked away with multiple nominatons but the good news is that our boys Lulo Cafe & AKA also managed to score significant nods.

AKA is nominated in 2 categories i.e. Best Male Artist and Best Street Urban Album for his debut ‘Altar Ego’. Lulo Cafe on the other hand surprised everyone by receiving a nod in the Record of the Year category alongside some of the biggest names in the music industry for his big summer hit “I wanna love you” that features the songbird Nothende.

We need all of the Honchos to rally behind our fam by voting for him. SMS the letter ‘G’ to 0831237262 as many times as you can .. Lets bring the SAMAs home!!

The Honcho fam hosted another installment of STAY FRESH SUNDAYS at Casablanca in Cape Town this past Sunday. The event was like nothing else that we have done in the past. Head Honcho ambassador LULO CAFE put together an inspiring set. He performed with a live band with the help of songbird Nothende. The result was a captivating, soul-stirring performance that took people on a musical odyssey.

We rounded up the event with top notch sets from PARTY PEOPLE’s legendary DJ Kenzhero. He took the Honchos down memory lane with songs from Lauryn Hill, The Fugees, Mobb Deep and TLC. Props are due to all the other DJs that held it down on Sunday … pH, Groove Afrika, Saxso, Vybes, Leo Large & Fritz the Cat all put on dope  sets. Big Shout out to our partners for the evening i.e. Channel O, Power Play and Fish Eagle.

See you guys at the next installment.

Our homie Lulo took this pic With Kay (BANK Productions) at one of our parties last year … Flight School Graduate indeed!

Wdup fam .. How are you living?

I’m doing good sir..making a living doing what i love

What a year it’s been for you … Don’t you feel exhausted? Is the constant travelling catching up to you?

Yeeeeah, its been an amazing year..well I do get tired but I do what most people do on a weekend, party. The difference is that I play the music for an hour or so.. the traveling has been great, it can get tiring but that as well really contributes to a bigger part of me and my career.

You’ve gone on to do some amazing things since we last interviewed you. You were nominated for this year’s Metro FM Awards for “Best House Compilation” and you ended up walking away with the award. How did that moment feel and were you surprised?

Damn that moment was quite a blur. I had to watch a re-run so I can remember what I said when receiving the award.. I was honoured ..to me it symbolized a change in the industry..

The award is obviously a testament to how successful your sophomore album was. Which tracks truly resonated with people and why?

Thanks.. “I wanna Love you” with Nothende really did well in the market, it got lots of love simply because it was my first take at production and i was blessed to work with a great co-producer Psyfo and a dope singer/songwriter Nothende… “Thank You” by the Layabouts is another timeless tune that people still love…and generally cause the album was a story of love and everything that surrounds it

A lot of people don’t know that you have very humble beginnings .. where did you grow up and how was your childhood?

Hahahhahahaha, man I grew up in Sasolburg (Vaal/Free State) with both my parents and 3 brothers and we were very reserved but our main connecting point was and still is music.. and as a kid my folks never really believed in spoiling a kid with toys etc.. but to invest in education and make sure there was food on the table. As a kid i didn’t understand but now I’m grateful for it is because of that I am who I am now…

How did you end up in Bloem and how did your experience there lead you to the music industry?

I was in Bloem to study but I dropped, and basically in my means to try make ends meet I ended up working at a music shop selling cds.. and my dream just fell into place and i had to get into execution mode. I’m glad I started at retail cause it gave me a broader understanding of the business.

Most peeps think its easy to break into the music industry .. what are some of the hardships that you’ve had to go through before finding your current success?

True, its not easy but i always say every artist/dj has to pave his own path, create something that is hard to reject..so i guess the difficulty comes when you need your product to be heard and for you to be taken seriously..so independence and passion are key!

Ladies are known to lose their composure around you … What are some of the craziest things that your ‘groupies’ or fans have done?

Hahhahahahahhaha, well nothing major, just the crazy requests to take photos, and hugs etc..but you can almost see them regain composure when they realize I’m just an easy going person and that I do stop to take pics and have brief chats.

You’ve been a Head Honcho ambassador for a minute now … What are some of your all-time favourite Honcho items?

Yeah, its been a minute … Well its definitely the baseball jackets. I have ‘em in all colors and i actually have 2 of the same one (red and black).

Do you pay taxes? How much did you give Uncle Sam last year?

Eish ya I have no choice in that matter… yho i don’t even wanna remember.. those guys kill us man!

Tell us about your upcoming project …. what can people expect from it and who are you working with?

Well I’m in studio creating lots of music, working with awesome artists, Tee Pee, Wanda Baloyi, Mo (ETV), Selina Campbell (UK)…just in preparation for a release in 2012.. will drop 2 new singles this spring tho.. I’ll keep it soulful.

Who do you look up to in the music industry?

A number of people hey.. my brother Mawe2, Vinny Da Vinci, Fresh, Christos, even my friends in the industry, Franky, Euphonik, Slikour.. I learn from ‘em

You recently became a father … How has that experienced changed you (if at all)?

Yes, its a life changing event. He brought me purpose and peace…fatherhood is a constant learning process

 Complete the following …

* DJ Franky is …. actually a sweet dude, even though he likes to play hardball, he’s very helpful and is a clown at most times

* Local music needs …. a brotherhood of musicians that have each others’ backs

* My Favourite city is …. damn.. there’s Durban, man I love East London, and the love in P.E is unfuckwithable, Cape Town has me good hey.. hayi there are too many..Bloem is where it all started so the love i get there is heartfelt and emotional

* Nonhle Thema has … the sweetest smile

* Mawe2 is … my inspiration

* Joburg lacks … genuine people

Follow Lulo Cafe on Twitter @LuloCafe and listen to his radio show on Metro FM alongside Naked DJ every Friday at 7:30pm.