KOL / Pioneer Unit Open Mic Challenge Champ Crowned at Zula

June 2, 2010 Activism, Community, Live No Comments

Last Saturday (29th May), Manqoba won the KOL / Pioneer Unit open mic challenge, narrowly defeating Garlic Brown, Lex Luthor and Nicotine Lung. The winner was decided by crowd reaction but, despite great performances by all four finalists, Manqoba’s punchlines and high energy performance sealed the victory for the Khayelitsha representative.

Manqoba’s prize is a recording session at Red Bull Studios where he will make an EP that will be digitally released by Pioneer Unit. All money earned through sales will go to the artist. Because we felt that all the finalists were so strong, and that no one really deserved to lose, we decided to also record a track featuring all the finalists for inclusion on the EP.

Saturday’s event was part of the Kool Out Live / Pioneer Unit joint birthday celebrations. One emcee was chosen from each of four open mic sessions that were held in four different hoods (Kuils River, Phillipi, Khayelitsha and Guguletu) during the month of May. The winners of each open mic session were invited to compete at a final which was part of the KOL Presents: Pioneer Unit All Stars event at Zula Sound Bar on Long Street that featured Ben Sharpa, Driemanskap and Jaak.

Pioneer Unit is proud to have been part of this initiative. There’s a lot of talent out there and virtually no platform for artists to shine. We’d like to thank Red Bull for playing their part, and of course KOL. Also thanks to Camilo, Caveman, Driemanskap, Illverse, Metabolism and Mingus for hosting the various open mic sessions. Last, but not least, big up all the emcees who came through to take part. Keep your dreams alive and keep doing your thing! Hopefully we’ll be doing this again.

DJ ID and Mingus enjoying hosting (click photo for larger version)