Cece Celestina

My name is Cebile Dube. I am the founder and creative director of Emasikweni Arts. I am an indigenous traditional African music and dance performer. I am also a culture activist. I am born of the EmaSwati tribe, which is a minority among the Nguni tribes of Southern Africa. Emasikweni is an arts and culture organization concerned with the protection and promotion of indigenous arts and cultures of South Africa. Our dream is to protect vital ancestral knowledge and expertise because we believe it is what we need to draw up our dreams for the future. We dream of protecting indigenous identities, cultures and livelihoods for the sake of our physical and spiritual wellbeing. We believe that the first link to one’s indigenous heritage is language, therefore the promotion of indigenous mother tongue language ranks high on the list of priorities of ancestral knowledge to be protected. Heritage and language is what gave us our identities, cultural practices and lifestyles and therefore we promote it. It is also from that stand point that we are able to tell authentic indigenous African stories and preserve our history. By producing and presenting high-end quality content, we will transmit traditional knowledge through music videos, recorded music, dance tutorials, tribal painting events, and live performances. We offer a complete spiritual healing experience and traditional mental health awareness practice through music. We also offer indigenous music and dance workshops, and promise to give our audiences a showpiece appealing to the eyes, pleasing to the heart and
intriguing to the mind.