R&B legend Deborah Cox is in Mzansi and fans are eager to catch her performance.
She is here for the “Magic Music Sessions” sessions concert in Cape Town and Pretoria this week.
Fans sought refuge in her songs whenever they faced a break-up, heartache or simply just needed to vent.
We got to chat to the 2022 Canadian Musical Hall of Fame Inductee, who touched down in Cape Town on Tuesday afternoon and went on a tour of the city immediately after landing.
Independent Media Lifestyle sat down with the 49-year-old songstress at the Taj Hotel in Cape Town, where she spilled the tea on her title as the Canadian Musical Hall of Fame Inductee, her fascination with Mzansi and why she hasn’t written music in years.
Cox, looking radiant in her checked black and white pants suit as she excitedly, said : “I’m happy to be back in Cape Town and South Africa, generally, but me coming to Cape Town is biblical, I describe it as biblical.
“South Africa is a beautiful place, there’s something unique about coming here. I was here, in Cape Town, in the early 2000s’ and coming back is amazing, I did some touring since I’ve been here and got to visit Table Mountain and the food is amazing, I’m annoyed that I don’t get to stay here longer though.”
The mother of three said that she hasn’t written music in years as she is steering away from exposing her personal experiences.
She explained: “I’m inspired by a lot of things, life, I might see a movie that conjures up an idea. I don’t write much now because I have a lot of different things going on at the moment with a project in the studio but when I do write it’s really intimate and it’s personal, so that's why I don’t like to write music because I don’t want to reveal that part of myself.
“Most times it is about a story someone tells me or what I hear on the streets, inspiration comes from many different places .”
Cox will be performing alongside award-winning singer and songwriter, Musiq Soulchild.
“I'm thrilled to be performing with Musiq Soulchild, I think it’s a great collaboration.”
She becomes emotional as she speaks of the moment she was recognised as the “Canadian Music Hall of Fame Inductee”.
“It feels surreal to receive this award because coming up, there was no infrastructure in Canada, no real support for the music that I was doing so I was shunned and I was diverted to a different direction, but it forced me to lean on other talents and to make a mark in the US predominantly and through that, it just gave me different musical bags that I can pull from,” she explained.
“The rejection was like redirection because it forced me to do different types of things and finally when the industry took on and understood what I was trying to do, they understood that there was nobody else to do it yet, and so they decided to give me some recognition, so that felt really gratifying and liberating that they finally got it, Im thrilled, I feel filled with gratitude.”
The much anticipated shows are set to take place on Thursday, July 27, at Grand West in Cape Town, while Pretoria will host the second leg on Saturday, July 29, at the SunBet Arena.
Cox, a Toronto-born singer with five successful studio albums will deliver nothing but an exciting performance of her timeless and classic hits such as, “Nobody’s Supposed To Be Here”, “Where Do We Go From Here”, “Sentimental”, “Up and Down (In & Out)” and “We Can’t Be Friends”.
Musiq Soulchild, a Philadelphia, Pennsylvania-born R&B legend with nine studio albums under his belt is no stranger to South African fans, and is well-known for hits such as, “Love”, “Half Crazy”, “Just Friends”, “So Beautiful”, “Girl Next Door” and “Don’t Change.
During the interview, I introduced Cox to a remix of her music as it is played in Cape Town and she loved the experience.
I explained the importance of adding an up tempo beat to the original song.
She reacted in surprise and loved the beat so much so, she danced along to the rhythm.
“Oh this is a vibe, I can dance to this in a club,w she said.
South Africa’s Ami Faku and Vusi Nova are supporting acts alongside the legends on their SA tour.
Ticket prices vary between R450 - R1450 and can be purchased via Webtickets.