The Southern African Music Rights Organisation NPC (SAMRO) hosted the 1st annual Members’ Function and Showcase in Cape Town on 29 July 2015. The event took place at the Cape Town International Convention Center (CTICC).
The aim of this event was not only to showcase Cape Town based SAMRO members’ talent, it was also a chance for SAMRO to have face-to-face interaction with its stakeholders in the region and bring them up to speed with organisation’s yearly program. Stakeholders in attendance got a chance to engage with SAMRO’s executive team, including the Chief Executive Officer, Mr Sipho Dlamini.
According to Tiyani Maluleke, SAMRO’s Marketing General Manager, this function is one of many to come designed to serve as a vehicle for the executive team to get to know SAMRO members in the Western Cape region and other parts of the country.
“For many years, we have not fully interacted face-to-face with our Western Cape members. Through this gathering, we hope to further solidify the relationship with these members and also to assure them that we are doing our outmost for them to easily access the society,” says Maluleke.
SAMRO members were also given much needed insights into SAMRO’s operations including issues such as how royalties are collected and distributed. The collecting society also addressed the need to find effective solutions for important matters that affect the members.
“We felt that this would be the opportune time for us to meet with our members in the Western Cape. All our members in the province were invited to come and dine with us as we provide them with important information on how SAMRO works as a copyright administrator. It has really been a very fruitful experience for us as SAMRO.” Maluleke said.
The entertainment for the evening consisted of special performances by some of the Western Cape’s up and coming artists who are also SAMRO members. SAMRO felt it important to give this prestigious platform to the region’s rising stars who have not yet made it into the mainstream.
“It is imperative for us to give up and coming artists a platform to showcase their artistry in music through events such as this, with the hope that they will be catapulted into mainstream,” concludes Maluleke.
The evening’s line up of performances included: Kyle Shepherd, Ernie B. St. Clair, Delft South Origins (DSO), Andrei Damane, Jonathan Simons, Jitsvinger and Wawela Music Awards nominees – Blackbryd and Sam & Calla.
