South Africa has declared a lockdown, effective as of Thursday, March 26 and it feels like almost all our social lives are going to come to a grinding halt. Johannesburg is considered to be the epicentre of the Coronavirus outbreak in South Africa and all South Africans are urged to play their part in helping prevent a wider spread of this deadly virus by staying, at, home.
We cannot shy away from the fact that we are social beings and crave social activities but in order to tackle this pandemic, self-isolation is crucial.
While you stay at home during this 21-day lockdown, don’t get stuck up on your phone reading all the depressing stories, instead keep your spirits up and join a global community in enjoying the many concerts by some of the world’s most famous artists currently streaming online.
D-Nice’s Quarantine Dance Parties
Chicago house music DJ D-Nice is hosting some of the best quarantine parties in the world, live on Instagram. His epic #couchparty series which kicked off with a marathon 9-hour set on Sunday March 22 started going seriously viral with Michelle Obama, Jennifer Lopez, Rihanna, Ellen DeGeneres, and even Oprah all dropping in to join the party remotely.
To be part of “the biggest party in the world” follow D-Nice on Instagram and tune in to his “Lives.” D-Nice also has put together some outstanding Spotify playlists of uplifting dance tracks under the name “Homeschool”.
Little Dragon go live on Youtube
Everyone’s favourite Swedish alt-electronica band Little Dragon are going live on youtube on Friday March 27 at 21:00, streaming a free ‘at home’ gig that you will also be able to watch afterwards online. Watch the gig live on their Youtube page here.
Relive AfroPunk Joburg 2019 on SABC 3
It wasn’t so long ago that Joburg’s afropunks descended on Constitution Hill for the second annual Afropunk music festival, a celebration of Africa’s open-minded, non-conforming and unconventional communities.
Tune in to SABC 3 on Saturday March 28 at 21:30 and relive the best moments from this iconic festival including performances by major alternative artists from around the world such as Solange Knowles, Masego, Miguel and Nao. Meanwhile representing local talent there were also performances by Gqom, Afro-psychedelic, house, rap and Afro-futurist performers such as Burna Boy, Sjava, Sho Madjozi, Busiswa and the Jazz Disciples.
This South Africa only broadcast airs on Sat Mar 28 at 21:30.
iHeartRadio Living Room Concert For America Hosted by Elton John
Led by Elton John, some of the biggest musicians in the world are joining in an online ‘living room’ music festival, performing a tribute concert to the front line health professionals and local heroes helping to fight the spread of COVID-19 pandemic. Initated by British superstar Elton John, the Living Room Concert sees artists performing in their living rooms and filmed with their own personal cameras and audio equipment.
Featured artists include Billie Eilish, Alicia Keys, Backstreet Boys, Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day, Mariah Carey, Tim McGraw and more.
Find out how to watch or listen to The iHeartRadio Living Room Concert For America here. The show airs on FOX TV Sun, Mar 29 at 21:00 Eastern Time or 18:00 Pacific Time (Mon, Mar 30 at 03:00 GMT+2 in Johannesburg).
Bands In Town
Coronavirus won’t stop the music. Music promoters Bandsintown is organising a marathon series of live-streamed concerts to raise money for the MusiCares COVID-19 Relief Fund. The marathon features all genres of music and stars from across the world including Joburg’s very own DJ Black Coffee. Check out news.bandsintown.com for the programming and a complete listing of live music streams happening around the world which will be aired live on the Bands In Town Live channel on Twitchtv.
Social Distancing Festival
Some very clever and busy people have been busy pulling together hundreds of online-streamed cultural events happening around the world including DJ sets, opera, concerts, theatre, stand-up comedy and more. Head to The Social Distancing Festival website to browse the calendar of events to watch online.
Global Citizen Together at Home
Global Citizen has partnered up with artists across the world to stream concerts, filmed in the artist’s homes, on their Instagram page. Themed ‘Together at Home’ the series has so far featured major names such as John Legend, One Republic, Chris Martin, Ziggy Marley, Common and Miguel. You can check out these full-length performances on Global Citizen’s Instagram TV page.
The Quarantine Online Party
Normally at month-end Joburg would be preparing for some major club nights and all-night partying. Now of course we can only party at home. South African Amapiano giants DJ Maphorisa and Kabza DeSmall have vowed that they won’t let the #Lockdown stop them from keeping South Africans entertained. Join them for a live-streamed amapiano concert happening Saturday March 28 from 18:00 until midnight streamed live on Facebook.
Other DJs are also joining in the quarantine online party, hosting Saturday night streams from their own Facebook pages, including Umlilo hitmaker DJ Zinhle and Afro-soul stars Black Motion.
Scorpion Kings 21 days lockdown
In addition to the epic Saturday night quarantine party DJ Maphorisa and Kabza DeSmall (aka Scorpion Kings) have now also dedicated themselves to hitting the decks at home and live streaming it every single day of the lockdown! The live shows are streamed daily here on Piano hub.
NPR’s Tiny Desk Concerts
There couldn’t be a better time to go back and enjoy NPR’s Tiny Desk concerts series which sees a host of interesting world music stars visiting the NPR office to perform an acoustic concert recorded at the so-called Tiny Desk.
With self-isolation now in place Tiny Desk continues but rebranded as the Tiny Desk (Home) Concerts. Watch all the Tiny Desk concerts online at www.npr.org/series/tiny-desk-concerts/