Moorosi Tsiane
MORE than 10 000 revellers are expected to descend on the Manthabiseng Convention Centre on September 5, 2026, for what promises to be one of the biggest entertainment spectacles on the Lesotho calendar — the fifth edition of Spring Jump Off.
With a star-studded line-up featuring some of the biggest names in South African and Lesotho entertainment, organisers say this year’s edition will be more than just a music event, but an experience aimed at giving young people a different way to enjoy themselves.
The annual Spring Jump Off, which has grown from a Johannesburg-based event into a regional entertainment brand, will take place at the Manthabiseng Convention Centre, with gates opening at 10am.
The event will be headlined by South African heavyweights including Scotts Maphuma, Leemckrazy, Uncool MC, Emtee and Vetkuk vs Mahoota, while Lesotho will be represented by some of its most exciting acts, including Ntate Stunna, Phoka ea Boroa and Litshepe LR, among others.
A number of emerging artists will also get an opportunity to share the stage with established stars.
The event’s picnic-style format is also expected to appeal to young people looking for a full-day entertainment experience rather than a conventional night-time concert.
Tickets are selling for M150 and are available through Vodacom’s M-Pesa platform and Ticketbox.
For the men behind the event, DJs Vetkuk and Mahoota, Spring Jump Off has become much bigger than the party they started in Johannesburg in 2000.
According to Mahoota, the decision to establish Lesotho as a new home for the event came after they met local events heavyweight, DJ Mekonko, in Bloemfontein.
“We have been having this event in different provinces in South Africa until we got to Bloemfontein, and that was where we met with our brother here, Mekonko,” Mahoota said.
“He suggested that we bring this event to Lesotho and we also thought that was the right time to find a new home for the event.”
The idea appears to have paid off.
Mahoota said the response from Basotho since the event arrived in the country had exceeded their expectations, with patrons embracing the concept of a daytime music festival combined with a picnic atmosphere.
“This event has been receiving lots of love and support from Basotho and we are very grateful for that,” he said.
“It is a day event with a picnic sort of a set-up. We want to give the youth a chance to have fun during the day.”
Organisers are now expecting the fifth edition to take the experience to another level, with the anticipated turnout adding to the excitement surrounding the event.
But according to Vetkuk, the success of Spring Jump Off should not be measured only by the number of people attending.
He said the event had also become a vehicle for giving back to communities while creating opportunities for young and emerging musicians.
Among the initiatives associated with the event was last year’s donation of blankets to herd boys, done in collaboration with the Lesotho Tourism Development Corporation (LTDC). The previous year, organisers donated school shoes to local schools.
“We have seen lots of positives coming out of this event because we have also been giving back to Basotho,” Vetkuk said.
He added that one of the most important aspects of Spring Jump Off was its commitment to opening doors for local artists.
“We also give upcoming artists a platform to share the stage with renowned artists. That exposure can change the trajectory of an artist’s career.”
This year, the organisers are taking that exposure strategy even further through a partnership with Sino Ndofaya, the two-time award-winning South African podcaster, social media personality and emerging music artist, best known as the co-host of the Open Chats Podcast.
Ndofaya will co-host the event while broadcasting from the venue through his popular podcast, bringing the performances and artists to audiences beyond the physical crowd in Maseru.
Vetkuk said the partnership was intended to give performers, particularly emerging local acts, much-needed exposure.
“Sino Ndofaya will be broadcasting on his podcast and this is intended to give the event wide publicity, which will in return benefit the artists, especially the upcoming ones,” he said.
“We were last year working with Channel O and it did wonders for some local artists such as Sannere and Litshepe LR.”
The impact of last year’s event was particularly significant for some local musicians who found themselves rubbing shoulders with major South African names.
Following the event, local acts Mavele and Tash were able to enter the studio with Vetkuk vs Mahoota and record a song, while Sannere also recorded a song with South African amapiano heavyweight Kabza De Small.
For the organisers, such collaborations demonstrate why Spring Jump Off is about more than simply bringing big names to Lesotho. It is also about creating connections that can help local talent break into wider markets.
The event is sponsored by Lesotho Times, Mohale FM, Maluti Mountain Brewery, Vodacom Lesotho and Ticketbox
