South African artist, Black Coffee performed to a sold out show in Tel Aviv, Israel.
Well-known South African DJ, Black Coffee (real name, Nkosinathi Maphumulo) visited Israel on 31 March 2018 for a one-day only show opening the Israeli Spring or Passover for 2018.
Other performers supporting Black Coffee at the sold-out event, hosted by The Tripping at the Rocks Garden in Tel Aviv’s Gaslam district, were Jean Claude Ades, Jenia Tarsol and Uriah Klapter.
The 41-year-old Black Coffee, who boats a huge South African and international audience travels regularly between South Africa and major world party capitals including Ibiza, Las Vegas, Miami, London, Amsterdam, among many others.
Black Coffee is currently in Naples, Italy as part of his Spring Tour, which began on 1 April in Amsterdam. He will once again be visiting major party spots around the world until 30 May, with his final performance in Stuttgart, Germany.
Meanwhile, his performance in Israel drew some detractors in South Africa, including one opposition politician from the Economic Freedom Fighters, Floyd Shivambu, who wrote on Twitter, “South Africa’s isolation and the Academic & Cultural boycott are part of the reasons Apartheid capitulated to the call for freedom. It is morally & politically insensitive for DJ Black Coffee to just go on partying in Apartheid Israel, whilst it kills & oppresses innocent people.”
A comment summarily dismissed by Black Coffee through a tweet of his own, which pointed to his reasoning for the performance, which he explained as follows: “Like everyone else I have rights and free will and no Black Coffee is not a political party…I work as an entertainer to feed my Family. To sum it up… I’ll take a bullet for my Family.”
South Africa houses a noteworthy anti-Israel lobby, which is a combination of Indian Muslim groups, trade unions and student formations, which often employs violence, intimidation and Antisemitism to dissuade South Africans from associating with Israel.
The lobby also holds considerable influence over the governing African National Congress (ANC) party, and successfully swayed the ANC to adopt a resolution on downgrading the South African embassy in Israel at the party’s 2017 elective conference.
Politics aside, many social media users defended Black Coffee and chided his detractors for either being jealous or having no jurisdiction over what Black Coffee chooses to do in a democratic South Africa.
Here are just some of the comments:
It’s not Black Coffee‘s problem that he is gigging in a warzone state and that people are dying like flies everyday, it’s a political problem. Surely he was booked and surely he has fans who wanna see him on set.
Leave Black Coffee alone…you’re not milk or sugar to complain about Black Coffee not considering your feelings.
Black Coffee is a businessman and you cannot expect him to turn down lucrative opportunities for “virtue signalling”. Let the guy go and make his money, one performance in Israel won’t change a thing. We got more important issues to solve. Your focus should be on South Africa.
Black Coffee‘s full time job is to entertain people (a DJ). He has nothing to do with political scandals or country’s difficulties. Therefore, those who against him ‘niyanya straight’ #BlackCoffee
He’s an entertainer not a politician!!
Black Coffee is an artist and that’s how he makes his moola. Can you take care of his family and provide for them? No. So please leave him alone.
