Snoop Lion performs during the inaugural MTV All Africa Stars Concert at Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban on Saturday.
Artists at the MTV Base Africa All Stars concert in Durban on Saturday night proved they had more than just a few popular songs to carry their names. And Jo'burg will definitely be in for a treat when Snoop Lion – formerly known as Snoop Dogg – performs at Ellis Park stadium this Sunday.
View images from the event on the M&G's Instagram account here
With a number of prolific artists performing at the concert at Moses Mabhida Stadium, the affair was a curious one. Durbanites are very rarely seen to attend events — especially when it's raining — no matter who the performers are. At R40 a ticket however, even the most homely of people were persuaded to leave their living rooms to see acts such as Snoop Lion, Fally Ipupa, Big Nuz and Zahara perform.
The concert opened with a set from Sama award-winning DJ Cleo, who, although making his name as a house DJ, entertained the crowd with popular hip-hop songs that set the mood for the rest of the night.
Revellers at the concert seemed most excited to see Snoop Dogg &nash; "What will Snoop Lion sing?" asked some – and Zahara, who hails from the Eastern Cape.
Zahara received many compliments on social media and from concertgoers about her outfit and new hairstyle.
Durban performers Big Nuz, accompanied by DJ Tira, gave their home crowd something to cheer about. Every song was met with raucous cheers, singing and growing circles of dancers in the audience.
In a show of South Africa's evolving music tastes and the reach of international music in the country, African acts 2Face, D'Banj, Fally Ipupa, Camp Mulla and Flavour got as much love as Snoop Lion did.
Snoop Lion, who refers to himself as the reicarnation of Bob Marley, played two of his reggae-inspired tracks from his new Reincarnated album, before performing some of the tracks that made him famous, including Gin n Juice, Drop It Like It’s Hot and Gangsta Party.
Snoop ended the concert by calling all the artists back on stage for the finale, which included a collaboration with Nigeria’s D’Banj and a short traditional Zulu dance.
Snoop Lion's concert on Sunday is due to be streamed worldwide.