The latter featured Leon Botha, an experimental South African artist and one of the world’s oldest survivors of the premature aging disease progeria, who appeared as the group’s DJ. The motto of the game is "If you have a problem, and you can't solve it alone, EVOKE it" an action which the project defines as a call to "look for creative solutions. A year later, the videos they created for the tracks Zef Side and Enter the Ninja became viral hits. They aim to "empower young people all over the world, and especially in Africa, to start tackling the world's toughest problems: poverty, hunger, sustainable energy, water security, conflict, disaster relief, health care, education, human rights" using online gaming as a tool.
The World Bank Institute, the learning and knowledge arm of the World Bank Group, and alternate reality game master Jane McGonigal have created Evoke, a project designed to connect young people in Africa to their counterparts in the the developed world. Taxijam, an outfit that films bands performing in taxis defines them as "a lovable, mongrel-like entity made in South Africa, the love-child of many diverse cultures, black, white, coloured and alien, all pumped into one wild and crazy journey down the crooked path to enlightenment."ĭie Antwoord crew is Ninja, Yo-landi Vi$$er and DJ Hi-Tek. If we were talking art in the language of the critic, Die Antwoord would be called "important" because they are different and new. Go to their Facebook page and it becomes clear that Die Antwoord is infinitely desirable: more than 5000 fans in two days and an invitation to visit Minneapolis (and Kiev, Prague, Springfield, Milan, Ottawa. It's utterly confusing to my sensibilities, yet I cannot say that I am not entertained by it." One witness to Die Antwoord's Enter the Ninja video (which features Jack Parow aka Leon Botha, a DJ with progeria) on the BoingBoing website says: " So good I wanna learn Afrikaans, to better enjoy those crazy lyrics." Another comment reads: " I am both terrified and highly pleased by this. It is like watching a train wreck, you cannot turn away."), the rest of the world is applauding Die Antwoord. As you puff yourself up while feeling deflated (on Facebook, Kevin Krawez says: "There is something about this group. If you are South African it will make you feel both proud and faintly nauseous. The Cape Town based "zef rap-rave crew", true to their website (, a big, flashy fullscreen one) byline which claims that they are "taking over the interweb", bashed and cursed their way into the ether this week with a brand of (un)pop(ular music) that is at once dystopic and celebratory. The Enter The Ninja video also features Leon Botha a prominent Cape Town artist who is one of the worlds oldest survivors of progeria. They came out of nowhere." "Sweeping" is an understatement. In response to the news of Botha's death, Die Antwoord MC Ninja took to the group's Twitter and Facebook accounts and posted the following simple message: "REST IN PEACE LITTLE BUDDHA"."Kylebaker" tweeted on Thursday morning: "Die Antwoord has been sweeping the net as of late. That video (see below) went viral in early 2010, boosting Die Antwoord out of obscurity and into global pop culture. Botha also deejayed under the name DJ Solarize.Īlready an artist of some renown at home, Botha got a taste of international celebrity when Cape Town rap outfit Die Antwoord featured him in its "Enter the Ninja" video.
Few people with progeria live past the age of 13.Īs evidenced by his Flickr photostream, Botha's visual art drew inspiration from myriad sources, incorporating imagery from the hip-hop world, martial arts, Buddhism, and ancient Egypt. At 26, Botha was one of the oldest known people living with progeria, a genetic condition that stunted his growth and gave him a prematurely aged appearance. Die Antwoord performs 'Zef' music, Zef being an Afrikaans slang term which loosely translates to the American equivalent of 'Redneck'. Zef is a South African slang term that describes a unique South African style which is modern and trashy and also includes. The 'Enter The Ninja' video also features South African progeria survivor Leon Botha, a prominent Cape Town artist. Die Antwoord performs music which incorporates many Zef elements and references. South African painter and DJ Leon Botha died of heart failure in Cape Town on June 5. The 'Enter The Ninja' video also features Leon Botha, a prominent Cape Town artist who was one of the worlds oldest survivors of progeria.