Singer/Songwriter Nakhane Touré Fulfills One Of His Dreams

It's a Thursday and you know how we roll here. Let me introduce you to one of my favorite new talent this year. From a sales guy at Look & Listen store where he sold and listened to the world's greatest artists to now sharing a stage with some of them. Meet the inspirational and talented Eastern Cape-born Joburg based artist, Nakhane Touré.

This week it was announced that Touré will be the opening act for American folk singer, Suzanne Vega on her world tour leg in South Africa.

Nakhane Touré (25) from the Eastern Cape town of Alice became infatuated with Suzanne Vega’s music while working at a Look & Listen music shop.

Who is Nakhane..

Nakhane Toure - is a Johannesburg-based singer songwriter.

Born 03 February 1988 in Alice, a small town in the Eastern Cape. He grew up predominantly in Port Elizabeth before relocating to Johannesburg at age 15.

While his friends listened to Top 40 pop songs on the radio, he spent his time discovering and loving the music that his parents listened to. These include Marvin Gaye, The O'Jays, Paul Simon and choral music. He often sang in choirs his family (from his mother's side) were memebers of, intensifying his love for harmony and later vocal multi-tracking.

It wasn't until the age of 19 that he took up the guitar after hearing Radiohead's 'In Rainbows' . He had previously played the trombone and steel drums in school bands and orchestras, after losing patience with the piano, which he would later play (albeit in a rudimental fashion). It was also at this point in his life that he began to appreciate folk music and rock bands.

While not losing his love for 60s and 70s soul music, his love for 'guitar music' and 70’s avant-grade fusion jazz grew, discovering bands and artists such as: Radiohead, Joni Mitchell, Nina Simone, Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock, Pharoah Sanders, Velvet Underground, Iron & Wine, Nick Drake.

But on top of those international bands (if not at the core) was the appreciation for brilliant African musicians such as: Simphiwe Dana, Ali Farka Toure, Miriam Makeba, Baaba Maal, Fela Kuti and Thandiswa Mazwai.

He chose his artistic name after Ali Farka Touré from Mali

Touré was cherry-picked from a string of hopefuls to open for Vega at the Paul Cluver Amphitheatre in Grabouw near Cape Town on Friday and Saturday evening, and at Montecasino in Joburg on Sunday, this weekend.

I am very proud of Nakhane and am also a huge fan of his music. Understandably his music is more for a niche market and may not be appealing to the masses in Mzansi but his talent and tenacity will see him go places.

Congrats brother!!!