R Kelly and local musicians help welcome the world

June 10, 2010

R Kelly (left) on stage. Photos by Roy Barford

Mr. South Africa, Denver Burns

With one of the biggest street parties you could ever imagine, Cape Town welcomed the world ahead of the 2010 FIFA World Cup™, with a little help from RnB star R Kelly and South African musicians like JR, Kurt Darren, HHP and Vicky Sampson.

An estimated 50 000 people partied in the streets of the Mother City on Thursday night, while around 17 000 were lucky enough to get inside the FIFA Fan Fest area on the Grand Parade, to see the amazing lineup of artists take the stage.

There is no longer any doubt that Cape Town has the World Cup spirit. People from all corners of the planet were out and about last night, waving their flags and blowing their vuvuzelas. An official parade, consisting of several thousand people, marched through the streets of the city centre. From minstrels to giant puppets, the parade was an array of creative genius.

At City Hall, R Kelly joined Cape Town Executive Mayor Alderman Dan Plato and Western Cape Premier Helen Zille, in lighting Cape Town’s torch ahead of its first World Cup. He then joined the Soweto Gospel Choir on stage at the FIFA Fan Fest area. The singer will reportedly again team up with the choir at the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ opening ceremony at Soccer City in Soweto on Friday.

R Kelly also entertained the crowd with his famous nineties song I Believe I Can Fly.

Vicky Sampson’s beautiful voice clearly moved the audience, as she sang her 1995 smash hit My African Dream and the crowd were also very appreciative of performances by Kurt Darren, Dr. Victor and HHP.

The most popular artist of the night was undoubtedly JR, the man who has now become synonymous with soccer celebrations in South Africa. His incredibly catchy hit Make the Circle Bigger had people of all ages and nationalities “busting a groove”.

Among the thousands of fans in the audience was Mr. South Africa, Denver Burns. The 25-year-old lawyer from Port Elizabeth said: “I’m just in Cape Town for tonight; it’s so great to be here, what a vibe!”

Burns, who is a recognised club footballer in the Eastern Cape, said he believed Bafana Bafana had a good chance in the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ and wished them all the best.

Bafana Bafana play Mexico at 16h00 on Friday. France will take on Uruguay at Cape Town Stadium a few hours later, at 20h30.

See more photos of the event below, as well as on our blog.