Stimorol Flow Lab held its first workshop this past Saturday, at the luxurious Hotel Sky, in Sandton. Stimorol Flow Lab brought the industry’s greatest to inspire and empower young up and coming artists in the music industry. Musa Keys, Majorsteez and Slikour were among the speakers present. The artists shared their insights on the music industry, how one can grow in the industry as they took the audience through their own journeys in the music industry.
The platform sparked beneficial conversations between musicians, producers and upcoming artists. They spoke about the hard work that goes into becoming successful in the industry and what keeps them going when it gets tough.
What is Stimorol FlowLab?
The Stimorol FlowLab is Stimorol’s new platform aimed at bridging the gap between South Africa’s greatest artists, music producers and upcoming artists and producers. In a country filled with a number of young people who want to make it in the music industry, Stimorol FlowLab felt the need to give upcoming musicians and producers the necessary push in the right direction. It is an opportunity to not only learn from the best musicians and producers in the country, but for the musicians/producers to share their journeys in life, before their prominence.
Guest speakers: Majorsteez, Slikour and Musa Keys
For its first workshop, Stimorol FlowLab sure did show up! They brought the talented South African hip-hop & RnB brother-duo, Majorsteez, award-winning rapper, Slikour and renowned South African music producer and Amapiano star, Musa Keys. To speak on the business side of music, the platform brought music operations manager at TikTok Africa, Yuvir Pillay (affectionately known as Sketchy Bongo) and regional manager for Ditto music in Africa, Wendy Bekker.
The Flow of the workshop
The venue for Stimorol FlowLab’s first workshop (Hotel Sky, Sandton) provided an intimate setting that allowed the speakers and audience to interact with one another. The workshop was centred around four sessions. First session themed ‘repping my city’ was kicked-off by hip-hop & RnB brother-duo, Majorsteez and rapper, Slikour.
Surrounding yourself with people who have your best interests at heart: Majorsteez
Majorsteez featured the likes of Cassper Nyovest, Costa Titch and Uncle Vinny, to name a few. The duo highlighted how their parents influenced their love for music, when they realized that music was their calling and shared a few words of encouragement to the audience. “The moment we knew that we’ve found our calling was when we recorded our song ‘Lies’ featuring Uncle Vinny and Costa Titch. When we recorded the song, we didn’t know what our next move was, but the support we got after the song came out made us realize that we actually doing good”, said one half of the duo, Steez (Sihle). The duo further went on to encourage up and coming artists to surround themselves with people who got their best interests at heart.
Believing in your craft: Slikour
Slikour who is a veteran in the music industry is not only a rapper, but an advocate for South African musicians/artists through his popular online music platform, Slikour on Life. Slikour left the audience inspired as he touched on his journey as a rapper, from Skwatta Kamp to Slikour on Life. He also emphasised on the importance of being authentic, sticking to your true-self and believing in your craft. “If you do believe in anything firstly, you got to ask yourself, do you have the confidence to convince someone that it’s only you, nobody else and you the greatest. If you don’t have that confidence, you are going to be part of everyone else who’s trying, part of everyone who’s constantly told that they are not good enough”, says Slikour. The music industry is a very competitive industry with so many young talents who want to make it to the top. Unfortunately, sometimes the pie is just not big enough for everyone, hence authenticity, hard work and confidence is encouraged to stand out from the crowd.
Releasing music in modern times: Yuvir Pillay & Wendy Bekker
The second session was themed ‘Scene and Heard’ with Yuvir Pillay and Wendy Bekker. TikTok Africa music operations manager, Yuvir Pillay and Ditto Music Africa regional manager, Wendy Bekker gave tips on how upcoming artists can use modern technology to distribute their music. They touched on the technicalities of uploading music on online music distribution platforms, different copyright laws, press releases, record labels, while sharing a few tips on building momentum on music releases.
Opening up the industry: Musa Keys
The third session was themed ‘Breaking the mould’ with Musa Keys. Musa Keys is a South African music producer and amapiano star, known for his hit songs ‘Samarian Boy’, ‘Vula Mlomo’ and ‘Selema Po Po’ to name a few. During the Stimorol workshop, the star spoke about how he started making music from a young age, and how he strives to uplift young, up and coming artists. In his recent hit ‘Kancane Kancane’, he featured new artists. “With the song ‘Kancane’, it was literally two new kids, nobody knew anything about them. Crazy thing, that was their first drop ever, and their first drop happened to be a gold-selling song, going for platinum now”, says Musa. He also touched on his versatility. The star does not want people to box him into a certain genre or style of music. Musa Keys does more than producing music, he also incorporates his vocals in some of his music. Musa Keys wrapped it up by emphasizing on the importance of choosing a team that has your best interests at heart. Especially with management, your manager needs to always have your best interests at heart.
To close off the workshop, there was a ‘Listening Session’. The session was for upcoming artists to show off their music. Stimorol played songs of those who submitted their songs for the Stimorol FlowLab. This gave the artists the opportunity to interact with the speakers, Majorsteez and Musa Keys. The whole purpose of the workshop is to open up the music industry, and to inspire future musicians and producers in South Africa. The workshop also gave insight on the business side of music. The next Stimorol FlowLab workshop will be held in KwaZulu-Natal. Let’s keep it flowing!