Celebrate with South African Hip Hop pioneer Emile YX? Jansen at his 45^th birthday “B-boy to being a Man” party and the official launch of “Mixed Mense” at Princess Vlei, in Grassy Park, on Saturday 20 July, 2013.

Known as the judge with the Afro on ETVs reality dance show Step Up or Step Out, Emile YX? will be releasing his fifth album with his latest project called “Mixed Mense”; a mentorship-style album which was developed with a group of  youth from Lavender Hill, on the Cape Flats.  “Mixed Mense” members include Leeroy Phillips (B-boy Malis), Stephan Benting (B-boy Mouse) and Charlton Eftha (B-boy Lank Genoeg).

The “Mixed Mense” album features 12 tracks, mostly Afrikaans, and has its roots in the history of Emile’s work with these young men over the years. In 2004, after returning from Scandinavia, Emile started one of many free classes offered at CAFDA, in Grassy Park, for youth from the communities of Retreat, CAFDA and Lavender Hill. Nine years later, some of these young men are still dancing and wished to learn to rap as well as pursue their ambition to make a living from their skill. Instead of lecturing them, Emile created “Mixed Mense”, which served as Heal the Hood Projects’ practical performance school.

This offered the three aspiring artists the opportunity to shadow Emile while he was working, where he taught and assisted them in developing their own teaching skills, which ultimately saw Emile passing on his classes to the three young men and allowed them to be paid for passing on the knowledge. In addition they got paid for performances, performed in Emile’s Hip Hop play concepts “Mixing It Up” and “Break”, as well as release a CD, DVD, book and travel nationally and internationally. Track 8 called “Ek leer vir jou” (I teach you) speaks of this journey of Emile, as the mentor, both teaching and learning from the members of “Mixed Mense”. “We all have to do our bit to empower our youth and create income opportunities for our youth”, said Emile YX?.

Other issues addressed on this album include “Goeie Nuus” (Good news) in Lavender Hill and the Cape Flats, land, breaking stereotypes, saving Princess Vlei and alcohol abuse. “Our future plans are to tour the Western Cape and work with youth from Manenberg, Gugulethu, Mitchells Plain, Khayelitsha, Heideveld, Nyanga, Hanover Park, Ocean View and other interested areas. We then plan to release a book with poetry, songs and short stories; create another CD with youth from each area and “Mixed Mense”. Then, a tour selling products these youths have created”, added Emile YX?.

The “Mixed Mense” album is selling for R80 each and will be sold at the event. Otherwise, the album can be purchased at African Music Store (in Long Street, Cape Town) and from the Heal the Hood offices (in Grassy Park) on 0217060481.  Contact Heal the Hood on the same number to book performances and talks at schools.

For a preview of the three mentioned tracks, log on to the following links:

Save Princess Vlei (Track 4) http://www.reverbnation.com/emileyx/song/16407857-save-princess-vlei-no-mall-

Goeie Nuus (Track 1) http://www.reverbnation.com/emileyx/song/16210631-os-het-goeie-nuus-by-mixed-mense

Ek Leer Vir Jou (Track 8) http://www.reverbnation.com/emileyx/song/15165245-ek-leer-van-jou-mixed-mense

A rough video of “Mixed Mense” can also be viewed on YouTube at:

“Save Princess Vlei” campaign

The event on 20 July 2013 also marks a passionate urgent call for action from Emile YX? to help save and preserve Princess Vlei, in Grassy Park. Quoted from Emile’s Facebook Event page, he states:  “I would like to draw the world’s attention to PRINCESS VLEI. Instead of sending me wishes or gifts, I want you to come and walk with me around Princess Vlei on this day, come rain or shine.”

“Come share a poem, a rap song, come and wash your face in her water, come and hear the wind whisper ancestral songs, come a touch the reeds along her banks, come and cry as we remember her and our collective pain, come be baptized as mens mens aka Khoi khoi by just being with us … we are but water ourselves, so come and pay respect to ancestry that goes deeper than tribe or race, come and be human with me on this day. Let your wishes be directed at saving our Princess Vlei, our humanity, our dignity”.

“Developers/ Greedy Capitalists are trying to build malls, a parking lot and cheap housing around this Historical landmark. Legend has it that Princess Vlei is named after a Khoi (Boesman, want Oom Dawid hou nie van daai name wat hulle ons gegee het nie) Princess who was abducted, raped by the Portuguese and taken into a cave at Elephants Eyes, in the mountain above the Cape Flats, Cape Town. It is said that she cried so much that her tears formed the wetlands of the area: Princess Vlei, Klein Princess, Rondevlei, Zandvlei and Zeekoevlei.”

For more information on this campaign or to sign the petition, log on to:

http://www.causes.com/actions/1684066-save-princess-vlei

Event Programme:

09:30 – 10:00       Meet & Greet, Introduction, Sign Petition, Prayers

10:00 – 11:30       Walk around the Vlei

11:30 – 13:00       Drum Circle with Break-dancers, Capoeiristas, etc

13:00 – 15:00       Braai and Performance
Performance Schedule: (If it rains, the event will move indoors)

13:00 – 13:30       Launch of Mixed Mense CD and performance of Princess Vlei Song. Sharing of

                                Princess Vlei video via blue-tooth

13:30 – 14:00       Black Noise re-launch new group, song & video

14:00 – 15:00       Various other Artists (To be confirmed)

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