The Black Power Station positions itself as collaborator of NAF

With its weight thrown behind musicians such as Phila Dlozi, The Muffinz, and Kids Love Jazz, as well as the celebration of icons such as uMam Madosini (Latozi Mpahleni), The Black Power Station has positioned itself as a socially conscious collaborator of the National Arts Festival (NAF).

Given the company’s name, coupled with its alignment with productions like Exiles in Exodus (theatre/poetry), Sunflowers For My Lovers (literary/performance), and Intshayelelo eBuhlanti, among others, it is easy to conclude that the organisation is a black consciousness movement.

However, founder Xolile Madinda clarified that while those influences were instilled by his late uncle, who was an ally of Steve Biko, the vision was broader than that.

His company’s themes weave in ubuntu, spirituality and nature.

These themes have been so well-received by Madinda’s audience that they have become somewhat of an expectation.

As far back as 2010 or 2011, Madinda noticed that the city centre would not be a viable home for The Black Power Station.

He saw that when schools closed and pupils went home, businesses typically became dormant.

“The township made sense because I wanted a space that would be a continuous home for artists, so that our creative timetable didn’t need to depend on the presence of students,” he said.

Madinda said there were no definitive selection criteria when choosing the artists he aligned himself with, but their content needed to be themed around self-upliftment.

For this year’s NAF edition, Internet Athi, performing on July 2 and 3, is one such artist, as is Kitso, who staged Sons of Perdition: Umdyarho Wamabuzi on July 2.

Manenji Marimba and Mbira and Ukugqabhuka Kwenyongo are two of the performances taking place on July 3, followed by A Sending and Fam Jam on July 4.

“Internet Athi’s piece is about black-on-black violence, and Kitso’s show is about the social situation in Cape Town, which he based on his music.

“Most of the time, these artists are people whose work I’m familiar with. I’m always open to bargaining because I don’t charge the artists for performances,” Madinda said.

The Muffinz’s performances, he said, were almost a ritual, as it was the fifth time he was working with them.

While the company was a NAF collaborator, Madinda said, they remained completely independent and enjoyed the creative freedom of handling their own curation.

“The collaboration makes sense because we’re based in the same city, but we’re a growing space that has huge demand.

“I no longer need to ask some of the big artists to perform in our space because we’ve built good relationships.”

Over and above the festival, Madinda said his company honoured Biko with a mural, which was later vandalised when someone added red eyes to the image.

Madinda and his team are currently in the process of rectifying this.

For the founder, access is the highest currency.

He substantiates this by saying that even if an author is financially restricted, if they have a published book, his company’s doors are open to them.

The Black Power Station is located in an area that was once a village, which later became an industrial area due to forced removals during apartheid.

The irony of the company being located near an actual power station is that SA has been marred by load-shedding in recent years.

“The electricity we bring is the reconnecting of history and the energy of contesting the space as artists,” Madinda said.

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