Music

South African Union Says Boycott World Cup Concert

by Ciaran Thompson

The FIFA World Cup kicks off on June 11 with host nation South Africa taking on France, who really shouldn’t be there. Anyway, on the eve of the first string of matches a concert featuring international artists such as Alicia Keys, Shakira, Black Eyed Peas and John Legend will take place at Orlando Stadium in the Soweto suburb of Johannesburg.

However, due to the lack of local talent present during the event, a South African artists union are calling for a consumer boycott of the concert. A meeting between The Creative Workers of South Africa and FIFA/concert organizers took place last month where a deal was met to have more local talent involved.

Oupa Lebogo, union secretary general, says the group is still not satisfied with the roster. “This is not an African event; we are telling the masses to stay away from this event,” Lebogo said. “We are not calling for violence or protests outside the concert venue; we just want people to stay away from it.”

Emmy-Award winning producer Kevin Wall and his company Control Room was selected to organize the concert. “We believe sports and music transcend cultural, language and geographic barriers, and through the official FIFA World Cup Kick-Off Celebration Concert, we will present the sights and sounds of unity and celebration for an unforgettable, must-see experience,” Wall said.

Although the concert is sold out Lebogo said the ticket prices, roughly $61 Canadian, were too expensive for ordinary South Africans and called the scheduled gig an “elitist event.” [CBC]