History Of FreeRiddim

In the beginning there was something. Actually, we can't be sure what that something was. In fact the people that were around at that time wore strips of goat skin to the mall and considered a rain dance as the perfect date.
Many things have changed since then. So have we. This is Our Story.

As they say

We all know the story.
Someone's life gets saved by a paintbrush or a pen. Then an unhealthy infatuation ensues. Lust which feels a lot like love becomes an obsession, which then erupts into one night of passionate scribbling and abstract doodles. The morning after a burning sensation grips you and the ointment the pharmacist prescribes is as effective as a condom after the fact. And so that same night another encounter with the irresistable temptress results in a frequent rendezvous. The scribbles become poems and the doodles grow up to be pretty pictures.

And then it happens...

A few smokes get passed around the room and eight bottles of liquid trouble later someone gets inspired. Grabs a pen and a pad (giggles excitedly), and picks up a page instead.
Someone ends up head first in a toilet bowl watching their reflection become floating fragments of their last supper. Someones mother gets called in and the host's father rocks up in a foul mood with a pistol in hand and police commisioner in the back pocket.

Two hours later...

a girl soaks her pillow with tears and a boy mistakes a brick for a pebble and throws it through his girlfriend's window. The police get called in and apologies flow like blood on the streets when the red shirts start toyi toying.

At the end of it all...

smiles turn to frowns and no one's laughing anymore. But the artist is born so we can't really complain.

Respect the fact that there is no one road to get to this but, since we're all here we might as well make it work for everyone. Including the guy who gives you the stinky eye.

In truth

In the year 2005, Twist was crudely and irregularly published thrice by the two founders. The magazine at the time focused predominantly on Poetry & Hip Hop.
One of the founders has now started and ensured the engineering of a very hip hip hop brand; Apii. Alongside this venture, a series of other projects have mushroomed from this single idea. Namely Pruf, RootLevel and Red Light parties.

The other founder took to the direction of Poetry and with the constant tinkering and nurturing from the following people, FreeRiddim has grown exponentially and still continues to grow, as you now see it.

At the heart of it all FreeRiddim does not want to just make it happen for others through one project, rather to help us all hone each others gifts together.

The Familia

Sandile Nathi Xinwa
closeted eccentric with narcissitic tendencies and a cynical sense of humour. has been rumoured to be on sixteen types of drugs, probably not true but who knows.
blog | thenathixinwaexperience.blogspot.com

Siviwe Simeon Tshali / Shmah el Ben Yisrael
family man with irrepressible charmer qualities. perfect wingman to have on a slow night. articulate and very well spoken but may dominate the conversation with enlightenement and insight, so bring a tazer to look like a bad boy.
blog | unavailable

Nolusindiso Noqayi
silences a room with a script and a shotgun. she's the dynamite people write about. the cement that keeps the operation grounded though her head is always in the clouds.
blog | sindienoqayi.blogspot.com
blog | aboutsindz.tumblr.com/

Nwabisa Ngumbela
the queen mother with a critical and unwavering line of sight. artist living in the mind of a journalist. high probability of winning an unfair fight against iron mike and ali, with a ko.
blog | ahellishnightwiththerastafarians.blogspot.com

Unathi Nopece
the writer's writer. the exception to the stereotype and packs a kilo of wit in a 20gram sachet. well versed and thought out. alarmingly likes pink drinks with little umbrellas.
blog | unavailable

Entle Simon Pule
a professional with the soul of a hippie. as wild as the wind and skilled as a marksmith.
blog | unavailable