THE countdown officially begins! On Saturday one of the biggest female rappers of our time, US Grammy Award winner, Eve (pictured), will be in concert at Durban’s Wavehouse in Gateway for one night only.
Ever since her hit track Who’s That Girl?, I have been a fan of the phenomenal platinum-selling R&B artist. And I’m sure there are millions of fans out there who are thrilled about the chance to see the highly successful and talented singer, actress, record producer and fashion designer in the flesh doing what she does best.
In an exclusive interview with Tonight, Eve chatted about her career, her reasons for touring SA and the hip hop and rap game of today: “I’ve been to SA before. I enjoyed it the last time so I figured why not come back and experience this magnificent country again.”
Besides touring SA, the Tambourine singer also visited Aids orphanages in northern Africa, doing her bit for humanity.
Considered as the artist who broke ground for female rappers and known as the Queen of Rap to many, Eve laughs: “Wow, the Queen of Rap! Some music out there is not really my kind of music, but in terms of new artists such as Nicki Minaj, I’m glad she’s around, flying the flag for rap. I don’t know why there are so few female rappers.”
Having collaborated with some of the biggest names in showbiz (such as Sean Paul, Gwen Stefani, Dr Dre, Pharrell, the list goes on), Eve considers herself an MC as she is very passionate about her music.
Having been on the music scene for more than a decade now, we chatted about how music has changed and if it has affected her style of singing.
“The sound has changed tremendously and is completely different from what it used to be and there are different ways to get yourself heard now with YouTube.
“As an artist, I try hard not to be influenced by what’s new, but also I can’t make music that’s retro so I try to find the balance between the two yet keeping true to who I am and what music represents me.
“The key to staying relevant in today’s music industry is really putting yourself out there, putting out as much material as possible and making yourself visible.”
Aside from the huge reputation she has built for herself in the music industry, Eve is a woman of many talents. She is also very involved in acting. Asked which of the two she enjoys the most, she said:
“I can’t really choose because I love both. At the moment, I’m not working on any major acting projects but I have a new movie, Bounty Killer, that’s going to be released next year.”
Alongside Eve, some of SA’s finest artists are also in the concert line-up, including HHP, C-Live (5FM), DJ Dallas (US), Ismail Abrahams (Metro FM), Mimi K (Gagasi FM), Ready D, Ryan The DJ (5FM Ultimix Champion 2012) and more.
• Catch Eve at Gateway’s Wavehouse, Saturday, 3pm to midnight. Book at Computicket. The afterparty will take place at De La Sol Cocktail Lounge, 258 Florida Rd, with SA artists.