The Botsotso Jesters poetry performance group was founded in 1994. After a few member changes, it solidified in 1996 with the line up that published this first Botsotso book. The collectively written poems that provided such powerful performance material are followed by individual collections of each of the five. Anna Varney's graphics set the tone for many future books in which the combination of written and visual images becomes a striking factor.

From Soweto, from the hilltops of initiation, Siphiwe ka Ngwenya adopts the mantle of Killjoy, dissecting our liberation, questioning our infatuations, baptizing us in the juicy waters of procreation. Dance, Africa! he cries, before hitting Hillbrow pavements parading brothels, singing for children whose anger and haste cannot be measured or bulldozed, singing for workers who brave themselves from darkness to darkness while the drumbeat serenades and bass strums compassionate, and then stroking the morning dew, turning poverty into fiction, cuddling loneliness, nakedness entangling with passion while commanding us to rise! to celebrate!

It All Begins is a collection of poems in English by over fifty South African poets (and some Zimbabweans), with several contemporary translations from /Xam, Afrikaans, Xhosa, Xitsonga and Zulu. All the poems were published in the poetry journal New Coin between 1989 and 1999. These poems were written over a period which included the brutal last years of apartheid, the release of Mandela, the country's first democratic elections, and the disturbing trends of the post-Mandela era. During this time the violence of previous decades continued, although in different forms, while the poor became poorer. For poets, it was a time of innovation. Music, street rhythms, and international influences were opening up the vocabulary. Groundbreaking poems were being written - many of them unnoticed when they were first published. Collected in this anthology, they demonstrate the aesthetic diversity and truth-telling power of South African poetry. Poets include Lionel Abrahams, Tatamkhulu Afrika, Lisa Combrinck, Michael Cope, Jeremy Cronin, Ingrid de Kok, Angifi Dladla, Antjie Krog, Mazisi Kunene, Don Maclennan, Joan Metelerkamp, Kobus Moolman, Khulile Nxumalo, Mxolisi Nyezwa, Andries Oliphant, Karen Press, Lesego Rampolokeng, Ari Sitas, Kelwyn Sole and Stephen Watson.

In its 114th year, Billboard remains the world's premier weekly music publication and a diverse digital, events, brand, content and data licensing platform. Billboard publishes the most trusted charts and offers unrivaled reporting about the latest music, video, gaming, media, digital and mobile entertainment issues and trends.

In its 114th year, Billboard remains the world's premier weekly music publication and a diverse digital, events, brand, content and data licensing platform. Billboard publishes the most trusted charts and offers unrivaled reporting about the latest music, video, gaming, media, digital and mobile entertainment issues and trends.

From the concert stage to the dressing room, from the recording studio to the digital realm, SPIN surveys the modern musical landscape and the culture around it with authoritative reporting, provocative interviews, and a discerning critical ear. With dynamic photography, bold graphic design, and informed irreverence, the pages of SPIN pulsate with the energy of today's most innovative sounds. Whether covering what's new or what's next, SPIN is your monthly VIP pass to all that rocks.