Making music with a message

Published Jan 28, 2015

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Natalie Chapman hits the road, using her craft to help heal communities affected by domestic violence

After the resounding success of her tour last year, South African singer and songwriter, Natalie Chapman (pictured), starts the second year of her #90Days2015 tour at the Atterbury Theatre in Pretoria, tonight. Chapman, who is an advocate of a violence-free South Africa, is using the tour to educate people about sexual violence and its effects.

“Thanks to the planning, I can’t find time to really get excited. I know what to expect because I have done it before, but it remains to be seen how well we’ll do this time. When I left last time I did not know how we were going to finish because we did not even have half the venues booked. Three weeks before the tour I didn’t even have a car. It was a whole different ball game and I learnt a lot. There were venues that cancelled last-minute and some were double-booked. I got through it and it was personally rewarding. This time I am far more prepared,” said Chapman.

While other musicians prefer profitable avenues which come with big brands and a whole lot of hullabaloo, Chapman prefers the quieter one-woman crusade of going to 90 South African towns in 90 days to perform and enlighten her fans about the ills of domestic violence.

“I was in film-making a few years ago, and even back then in 2004 I was working on a project about domestic violence. I got back from living in London and just wanted to make a difference. I just felt that we were not respecting one another. I have been a victim of crime like everybody. My mom also grew up in a sexually abusive environment and I saw the impact of that on her and still see what it does to her now. So I think all this then became a question of me asking myself how I can make a positive contribution to the situation and make an impact,” Chapman said.

Since the subject is close to her heart, Chapman used her skills to spread the world on domestic violence.

“I have considered things like going to study law and perhaps lobbying for change, but I realised that I could do so much from the ground. When I go into the little towns where all the young people aspire to do is get a job at the factory or the girls dream of getting married, it is great to expand their minds with empowering information,” she said.

“I use the music to make the experience fun and also to break the ice. A lot of my music is about being strong, telling stories of people who succeed against all the odds. This year I am releasing a song called My Hero and, without knowing it, it addresses the people around survivors,” she explained.

Judging from the lessons she learnt on the first leg of the #90Days2015 project, Chapman’s mission is necessary as some people endure many bad episodes in their lives, and in most cases they do not know where to go or what to do.

“On the road, I have met fathers who have had their daughters raped and the impact on them is really harsh. They feel emasculated because they could not protect their little girls. So it is not only about the victims, but their families and the communities around them. What I do is try to be light about it, but also not come across as trivialising it. No one likes the word ‘rape’, especially in South Africa. We have a tendency to shut things up and act like it did not happen. Unfortunately, what that does is breed silence and the cycle continues,” she explained.

As she covers 15 000km, visiting 90 towns and performing 180 gigs, Chapman will be joined by a few musician friends who include Andra, Raoul and Black Friday, Garth Taylor, Shotgun Tori and Josie Field.

“I have asked those guys to come in every other city they can so we can make it memorable. I am hoping for an ideal where I can take this to other countries because the dream is to spread the project worldwide. When that happens I am hoping some artists will keep it running here at home,” she said.

The tour will be a road trip and Chapman has got some help from interested parties.

“Two weeks before the first one started last year, I had an old Mercedes Benz, which wouldn’t have gone far. I got lucky to get on the John Robbie show where I spoke about the project and my transport situation. As it happened, an executive from Kia heard the story and thought it would be great to be involved. So they lent me a Kia Sportage last year and have come through again this year, even paying for my fuel this time,” she said.

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