RJ Benjamin, Monde Mkhizwana to facilitate RSFAM workshop in Joburg

The workshop will be facilitated by industry professionals RJ Benjamin and Monde Mkhizwana at Goethe-Institut in Parkwood. It marks the end of a series of workshops facilitated across the country, including Cape Town, Durban and Polokwane. The Durban and Cape Town workshops were organised in partnership with Bridges for Music Academy and the KwaZulu-Natal United Music Industry Association, respectively.

Benjamin and Mkhizwana have operated in the music industry for more than a decade and boast extensive knowledge and experience. Benjamin is a well-known producer and vocal coach who rose to fame with his hit song ‘Change the World’. Additionally, he is well known for his work as a vocal coach and a producer.

Born and raised in Soweto, Mkhizwana is an entrepreneur and managing director of Wonga Music, a production company that produces music for TV and radio commercials. His most recent work includes the Big Brother Africa soundtrack, which he wrote and produced for the latest season of the reality TV show. Before joining Wonga Music, he was the drummer of experimental band Kwani Experience.

“Attendees can look forward to two days of knowledge sharing, learning and networking with fellow musicians,” MIAF project manager Violet Maila said. “The workshops will be interactive and relevant to the challenges musicians face today.”

Speaking about the Polokwane workshop, she said: “The Polokwane region is vast and a very interesting case study on the different sounds that exist in South Africa. It was important for us as an organisation to do our bit in empowering the talent that exists there.”

In 2021, the MIAF invited music creators operating in South Africa to participate in a survey aimed at guiding African music professionals to earn more income from their works. The research project looked at musicians’ income trends over the past 24 months, including earnings prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. The RSFAM project also mobilised field researchers in all nine provinces in South Africa to conduct interviews with music creators.

The Johannesburg workshop will give music creators a chance to learn about the key focus areas identified in the study, including maximising income through digital platforms and understanding music rights and optimising earnings from royalties.

The Music In Africa Revenue Streams for African Musicians project is supported by UNESCO’s International Fund for Cultural Diversity in the framework of the UNESCO 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, the Siemens Cents4Sense programme, Goethe-Institut, and the National Arts Council of South Africa.

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