Verity's Blog

Thought for the week...

Giving frees us of the familiar territory of our own needs, by opening our mind to the unexplained worlds occupied by the need of others.    -  Barbara Bush

Innovation in banking...

Last night I was the guest speaker at the Nedbank Student Evening that was held at their Rondebosch branch. I had spoken at a Business Network event the night before and the branch manager - Naeem Cassim - asked me if I would come along and inspire his guests. I have to say that when I arrived I was blown away. Not only is Naeem the youngest branch manger in the country by 4 years - he is only 22 - but he also has incredible vision and foresight into the fact that banks need to think out the box when it comes to catering to students.

His Student Evening saw the bank turned into a club - complete with dj, smoke machine, lights, a tellers desk serving as a bar and boxes of pizza on tap to fill everyone up. The objective was to get the students networking and have a chance to chat to consulatants in an informal environment and it worked! I gave a 20 minute talk on innovation and finished with "Shine" which had everyone singing along with me! Nedbank kindly bought a bundle of my albums and gave them away to students in the crowd and then the dj kicked in and the party started! It was a fantastic evening and really inspired me to see the financial community understanding the importance of connecting in a way that resonates. Well done Naeem!

Reaching For A Dream

The other day I was contacted by the Reach for a Dream Foundation to help a young eight year old girl Lize live her dream of being a singer. Having worked on the "Our Story, Our Voices" documentary for SABC1 back in 2006, I at least have had experience of working on a song and then getting some girls into studio to see what it is like to actually put a track together.

I immediately said I would love to be involved and set about getting some studio time sponsored. Amazingly, top producer Selwyn Shandel (Brenda Fassie, Hugh Masakela) kindly offered his studio and time to help Lize reach her dream. He also helped with the song we wrote for the 4 girls in the SABC documentary and it went on to be played on Atlantis Radio and gave the teens a voice in their community to say no to 'tik'. When you consider how much studio time costs it is fantastic to have someone of Selwyn's calibre just say "Yes!" and jump on board.

So - next Monday I will start the songwriting process with Lize when she and her family come to spend the day with me and turn one of her favourite poems into a song she can sing. Once that is done we will be heading to Selwyn's studio on the Tuesday and hopefully Lize can just love seeing her song come together. My sister has agreed to have her company Kayos sponsor the filming of the day so that Lize can always remember her dream being reached! Going to be teary eyes all round!

Joining the dots...

It struck me earlier just how many seemingly unconnected events have sparked amazing opportunities along my journey. Please bear with me as I try to connect a few dots...

In Feb 2007 I spoke & sang at The Womens Show and was spotted by Tanya Javonowski who headed up the Business Network South Africa. This resulted in my being invited to speak at numerous networks and go on to sell hundreds to albums. Once the album went to studio I stopped speaking at the networks and life continued as normal. Then in 2008 I was invited to perform at the Joburg Woman's Show and given a stand in lieu payment. Three days of telling people about my album resulted in close on 100 copies sold and the producers of Morning Live setting up an interview. This live news broadcast resulted in 60 albums selling on line within hours of the interview which led to The Argus contacting me to write an article. That article also appeared in The Star and IOL which got the attention of a Carte Blanche producer - Peta Krost-Maunder. After my story flighted on MNET I was flooded with emails and invited to speak once again at a Business Network Breakfast. At that event a photographer - Steve Bailey - bought my album. 8 months later Steve and his wife came along to our Kirstenbosch show & afterwards asked if I would speak at their Tokai Business Network. Along I went at 7.30am and after my talk not only sold quite a few albums but also connected with fellow musician Glen Robertson and met the new owner of the Business Network - Inshaaf Solomon. Inshaaf immediately invited me to speak at her Rondebosch meeting and at their student network meeting today. Once again I went along, met fantastic people, was spoiled with gifts and after the student talk I was approached by a Nedbank branch manager and will be speaking at an event there tomorrow!

So - looking back on the last two years I now can see a visible thread linking this all together but know that these opportunities are only possible because I have said "Yes" to them and as a result amazing things are beginning to unfold! The network is hugely powerful for connecting people in these ways so I am hugely grateful to be one of their chosen guest speakers. I am very excited to be speaking at Nedbank tomorrow as my journey is all about what is possible when we think 'out the box' and I love being able to share with the youth. Can't wait to see what tomorrow might hold!!!

Picture your life...

Paint a picture of the life you want - frame it well and then hang it on, the wall you build to protect your dreams, in your house of faith, where all is as it should be. You’ve got to see that life so clearly, want to taste it so dearly - there’s nothing to be afraid of trying, to get to what you’re designing.

Hell, I’m on this road where it may lead - 'cos wherever I go, well there I’ll be. I’m not afraid to at least give it a go, enjoy each moment and reap the seeds I sow.  ‘Cos I’ve got an image in my mind of what I need - I paint it everyday & soon it’ll be achieved. And when I find myself in that frame - well that’s when I’ll start painting all over again

There’s not sense in thinking you’ve ever arrived, truth is, you gotta keep moving as long as you’re alive. This life’s a journey & there’s only ever the road - so enjoy each step, ‘cos that’s the destination I’m told.  It’s all the yearning to be someplace else, that’s got people not being happy with themselves. Living your dreams & making it your own, will show you that in God’s eyes you’re already home!

Thought for the week...

Enthusiam finds the opportunities,

Energy makes the most of them.

    - Henry Hoskins

A story worth watching & sharing...

I have just watched this 10 minute clip and had tears streaming down my face and feel moved and inspired. The UpLiftment Program is run by a good friend of mine Nikki Jackman - an incredibly talented & beautiful actress who has chosen to use her talent not only to follow her own dreams & aspirations but also to bring a little more joy to the world.  Her laughter sessions & care clowning iniatives are phenomenal and watching this piece that was flighted on Free Spirit on SABC3 has brought home to me the enormity of the work she does and in the incredible difference her drive, passion and vision are making in this country.

Everyone of us can get involved in some way like this. It is so easy to get lost in the humdrum of day to day and forget how fortunate we actually are. Watching this was a big wake up call for me. There are so many people out there really suffering and just imagine finding a way to put a smile on their face and reach across divides and discover the humanity that unites us?

Kicking off Spring with a FREE concert!

The guys & I are looking forward to our Spring Concert at Wembley Square this Friday with awesome afro-fusion band CODA! It is fantastic to be able to put on a free show for fans & get down to the business of entertaining Cape Town - not only on Friday night but then also again at 11am on Saturday morning at the V&A Amphitheatre for the Sunflower Fund's Bandana Day!

Hopefully we will see a lift in the weather and have loads of people out to enjoy the music with us. Going to be a busy week of rehearsals & working on a few suprises for the show with CODA on Friday. If you are in town - DON'T MISS IT! The concert kicks off just before 7pm so is perfect for after work drinks & getting you ready for an awesome weekend!

Thought for the week...

What you build easily

Will fall quickly.

    -  Slovenian Proverb

Rolling With The Punches...

I find myself in a challenging place at the moment. I have an album that was financed by selling it before going to studio, gained huge media coverage in the process, contributed over R30,000 to charity & has resulted in already over 3000 people in 25 countries owning it. On top of that the story has seen three documentaries made about it on Power Within, Carte Blanche & Journey To The Core. As a result I have become a speaker on innovation and if I look back at the journey I am blown away by how much I have learned, the overwhelming support I have had from fans and the fact that I receive emails constantly to let me know how much people are enjoying listening to the album.

What's the problem you ask? The answer - RADIO STATIONS!

I have just heard that yet again another single from "Journey" hasn't been selected to be playlisted & find myself feeling frustrated & a little confused. "Angel" did really well on the regional stations but since then we are up against a brick wall of 'listening committees' that only apply to local music. The frustration for me is that stations play whatever international content they are told to and then when it comes to SA songs they have committees that all of a sudden are music experts on what the country wants to listen to. Not very fair considering they are supposed to be growing the local industry but in fact reject song after local song on a weekly basis & the public is none the wiser. I guess the fact that they are saying no to tracks like "Raise" & "Take You Back" confuses me as these are the songs that have everyone up & going crazy at our shows and seem to have the widest audience appeal.

I am not going to be deterred by mere music industry red-tape because I refuse to believe that 3000 people are wrong & some 'listening committee' actually knows what people in this country want to hear. Yikes - I know I must sound very put out & having a good rant, but the truth is things like this motivate me to innovate even more because the important thing for me is to share our music with the people who want to listen to it & I don't think I am doing to badly so far - with or without support from radio!

"It's exactly at times like these, when the going gets tough, and people begin resisting change, that you know things are about to get really, really good." (Notes From The Universe)