15 Aug 2022

Young people have been encouraged to use social media platforms wisely and profitably.

Giving a word of advise during International Youth Day in Tsabong Friday, the international DJ, Lefika Kebatlege commonly known as DJ Ngwazi, who is famous for his sizzling trending hit song Uthando encouraged the young people to take their music, products and services online rather than waste time online.

“Do not use internet to insult anyone, rather use it to make yourselves better people.

Do not trend for wrong reasons, companies and investors target the people who can relate to what they want.

No one will invest in someone who insults others on social media because that is where companies advertise their projects,” he said.

A successful musician in his own right, DJ Ngwazi encouraged the youth to upload and sell their music online as it was royalties’ inheritance for their children.

“When you are no longer in this world, your family will benefit from royalties,” he said, citing the son of the late music icon, Brenda Fassie, whose son Bongani still enjoyed royalties of music created by her late mother.

Therefore, he advised the youth to think outside the box and upload their music online, adding that such platform created multiple opportunities for artistes when their music was played in flights.

“Airplanes take hours to ferry people across continents and people listen to music and watch movies.

When your music is not available online you might miss out on such noble opportunities as some passengers could even call you to perform in their countries if they liked your music,” he said.

“The advantage of internet is that if you upload something on it when you are here in Tsabong, someone in America, Dubai, Europe, Saudi Arabia will see it, some may not be interested in your location, but your product.”

Having trotted the globe, DJ Ngwazi said he noticed that Botswana was at par with developed nations in terms of devising programmes and policies that supported the creative industry.

“I want to applaud the government for putting together programmes and policies that support the music industry and the youth.

DJ Ngwazi urged the youth to never give up, but persevere and follow their dreams even in the phase of adversity.

“When I started my music career it was a bumpy road, but because I believed in myself and that one day I would be an international superstar DJ, I put more effort.

I worked hard day and night throughout my music career.”

DJ Ngwazi began his career by playing at Kings Bar, a local bar in his home village of Thamaga.

It was there that things started to unfold and big things happened.

“I used social media well.

It can take you to places you have never imagined.

Make use of social media, it can take you far, it can make you someone you never thought you could become one day,” he said.

His DJ career took a professional turn in 2015 when he worked for RB2 morning show.

He left the station in 2018 to South Africa, where he began to work with the famous musician, Master KG.

“That is where things began to unfold as I started getting into music production.

I became a professional DJ and my career grew in leaps and bounds,” he said.

He encouraged young people to take their music to professional levels as it had the potential to transform the economy.

He said when events were put in moratorium due to the COVID-19 outbreak, the world lost US$2.4 billion because the music sector was not operational.

This, he said, showed that music played an integral role in economic development of the entire globe.

The internationally acclaimed DJ also appreciated the Ministry of Education and Skills Development for teaching French in schools.

“Most countries in Africa speak French, therefore introduction of French was one of the best steps.”

DJ Ngwazi, who was invited by the Ministry of Youth, Gender, Sport and Culture to empower DJs speaking to the theme ‘Intergenerational Solidarity: Creating a World for All Ages,  encouraged them to believe in themselves and work with government and related sectors.

He said laws that regulated the entertainment industry in Botswana were flexible.

“In the past bars closed at 2am, but these days they close at 6am, therefore, you can make three or four gigs in a night,” he said. ENDs