The South African Problem: Two Parties Operating on Vibes

From direct engagement with artists and promoters across the industry, the pattern is consistent. Both sides are negotiating based on what they have heard, not what they know. The artist's manager heard that a certain fee includes a rider. The promoter heard that riders are for big international acts only. Neither has read a contract template. Neither has opened a book on events management. The industry is running on hearsay, and the damage shows every Monday on social media.

The Twitter threads about who refused to perform because the sound was not up to standard, the “mang mang” who did not pitch, the promoter who withheld payment, these are not random incidents. They are the direct result of agreements made without proper contracts, riders negotiated verbally, and obligations that exist only in someone's head.

Here is the hard truth: the technical rider is the artist's responsibility. If an artist agrees to perform at a venue without confirming the technical setup matches their rider, that is a failure of management, not the promoter. And if the promoter books an act without reading the technical rider and confirming what the venue can deliver, that is also a failure of management. Both parties signed, or should have signed, a document that covered this.

The Manager Problem

When you agree to manage an artist, you take on legal and reputational responsibility for every contract signed in their name. That is not a social role. It is a commercial and legal one.

Too many managers in the South African industry operate without a management agreement. There is no document granting them authority to negotiate, sign, or commit on the artist's behalf. So when a dispute arises, the artist disowns the deal, the promoter has no recourse, and the manager disappears. This is not an industry problem, it is a basic contract law problem.

If you manage an artist, you need:

• A signed management agreement with a defined commission structure, scope of authority, and term

• Proxy or power of attorney clauses that confirm you can sign performance contracts on the artist's behalf

• A dispute resolution mechanism so that when things go wrong and they will there is a process

Stop agreeing to be someone's manager on a handshake. Lawyer up. The Performers' Protection Act 11 of 1967 and the Copyright Act 98 of 1978 exist. Use them.

Are Artists Abusing the System?

Some are. Requesting alcohol at three different gigs in the same city in the same week, from three different small independent promoters who are already running thin margins, is not a professional rider. It is an abuse of a document that exists to protect working conditions, not to fund a lifestyle.

The rider has a legitimate welfare function. An artist touring across provinces, performing late sets, traveling between cities. they need food, water, a clean space to prepare, and reliable transport. That is not excess. That is basic working conditions. But there is a significant difference between a hot meal and a bottle of Hennessy per show.

The question worth asking: if the hospitality rider disappeared tomorrow and folded into the booking fee, would artists manage those funds toward genuine welfare? In some cases, yes. In many cases, the fee would absorb into operational costs and the catering would still not happen. The rider, for all its dysfunction, at least creates accountability. The promoter must provide the agreed items or face a contractual breach.

Think of it this way. Welcome to my house, here is something to eat and drink while you work. That is the original spirit of the document. A host's obligation to a working guest. The problem is not the concept. The problem is when the guest starts demanding a specific brand of mineral water flown in from another province.

The Advice Nobody Wants to Hear

Stop accepting every booking because you are currently relevant. Being hot is not a business model. Host your own events. Build your own brand equity. Go on tour. An artist who controls their own events controls their own rider and their own revenue.

And for everyone operating in this industry: the information is available. Tassiopoulos wrote it down. The law is written down. Contract templates exist. The reason the South African events industry keeps having the same arguments every Monday morning is not because the answers are missing it is because not enough people are willing to do the reading.

An industry cannot run on vibes alone. Pick up a book.

References: Tassiopoulos, D. et al. Events Management: A Developmental and Managerial Approach (4th ed.). Juta Academic. | Performers' Protection Act 11 of 1967 | Copyright Act 98 of 1978 | Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008

Durban, Johannesburg, Cape Town: Three Cities, Three Realities

Much of the recent discourse has centred on crowd behaviour in Cape Town versus Johannesburg. Durban gets left out of the conversation, unfairly so. Durban is the clearest example of what happens when organisers deeply understand their audience. Events like Come Duze deliver year after year. The engagement is undeniable. The crowds are present. Participatory. Alive.

Why? Event organisers in Durban know who they are programming for. You cannot host an event in Durban without maskandi and gqom. This clarity is why Durban works. The sound is local. The identity is protected.

The Problem with Johannesburg and Cape Town

Johannesburg and Cape Town face a different challenge: audience diversity. Curating for a fragmented audience is harder. But organisers are not helping themselves. Instead of finding a niche and committing to it, many opt for the Galactico approach: stacking lineups with big names in the hope that star power will compensate for lack of cohesion. You end up with international hip hop, Afrobeats or R&B headliners supported by lineups dominated by dance DJs.

Who is this for?

When the crowd goes dead during certain sets, organisers act surprised. But the issue is not the crowd. It is the lack of narrative. We are a dance nation, yes. But everything has context. Everything has timing.

The Galactico Effect

In football, the Galactico effect refers to building a team of superstars under the assumption that individual brilliance guarantees success. It fails. Talent takes you only so far. Chemistry, structure and identity matter more. The same applies to events.

A lineup of superstars might sell tickets once. A well-curated event builds loyalty. It carries itself through theme, pacing and intention. Most South African events do not have themes. They have logos. They are artist mashups staged in front of branding, with no sonic journey, no emotional arc, no respect for flow. You would not curate a 90s R&B playlist by throwing together only hits and hoping for the best. The songs still need to speak to one another. They need transitions. They need mood. Events are no different.

We Need Curators, Not Galacticos

The weekend after your event should be about the memories people made, not debates about which city has a better crowd.We need fewer hungry-for-success promoters chasing validation through names. We need more curators. People who understand that identity is stronger than hype. Coherence beats chaos. Knowing your audience is the real flex.

Enough with the “amakip kip” lineups.