Mohalenyane Phakela
SOUTH African rapper Blaklez has lashed out at Jenuine Hype, the organisers of his ill-fated Maseru show, for their “unprofessionalism” and failure to meet agreed requirements.
Blaklez was billed to launch his second album, A Broken Man’s Dream, last Friday at Khubetsoana-based Club 4Fordy. However, the Wena Fela hit maker left Lesotho in a huff after taking issue with the organisers.
On his Twitter account, Blaklez slated Jenuine Hype for not fulfilling their end of the bargain, saying he and his crew were made to wait at the border for hours and offered below-standard accommodation facilities.
“To fans in Lesotho waiting on (sic) us to perform. We have left the country following (the) promoters’ failure to meet (the) agreed requirements,” he tweeted.
“We waited for two hours at the border for someone to come meet us. (The) Squad had been eating junk food whole day, needed a decent meal. A guy finally arrives to meet us at the border and we were surprised to learn that he was not even a decision-maker. He was sent, quite DISRESPECTFUL!
“From what we had been assured, we were supposed to put up in a four-star lodge, but something seemed shifty as we drove away from town and closer to a nearby village. (There’s) Nothing wrong with being in a village, but the problem is we had to get to the guest house to freshen up.
“We pulled up in front of some crib and the messenger said, ‘here is where you will sleep’, telling us they ran into problems in securing a suitable guesthouse and that it was a contingency plan.
“In my head, I was thinking that had to be a prank. I’m waiting on Tol Ass Mo to pop up from nowhere and say ‘You got got!’ Clearly this is not an MTV Base joke. No cameras, no Tol Ass Mo. So I figure maybe they went old school, Leon Schuster might pop up.
“Nope not even Leon Schuster. Manager finally gives these dudes 15 minutes to complete their joke. Time elapses and I quickly lost my sense of humour and ripped the guy a new one. Found my centre after about 10 minutes of ranting and we came back to SA.”
The clearly bemused Blaklez went on: “Can’t believe at this level I still have chancers waiting to pounce.
“If you are going to book me to an event in your city/country, respect my requirements. Do not mistake my easy going nature for weakness.”
Contacted for comment this week, Jenuine Hype’s Tumelo Mosoeu said the accommodation they had initially earmarked was fully booked, forcing them to come up with a contingency plan.
“We were not aware that the show would coincide with the Roof of Africa off-road motorcycle race and only discovered too late that the guest house we intended to book him was not available,” Mosoeu said.
“We frantically searched for proper alternative accommodation to no avail, which was the reason for the delay in fetching him from the border. We tried to reason with Blaklez but failed, so whatever we had already paid him is our loss.
“This incident has not only been very embarrassing, but has affected the way people perceive us and it will be difficult to reclaim the lost trust.”
