Music, celebration and honouring of Madiba will still be the order of the day this coming Saturday, at the inaugural Nelson Mandela Sport & Culture Day, despite the fact that one of the announced artists – US R&B star R. Kelly - will not be performing at the event.
Negotiations happened and contracts were entered into with the local promoter of the recent R Kelly Tour in South Africa. On the basis of this agreement, we announced on Monday morning that the visiting American star was on the bill for the music concert to follow the big day's sports events.
Soon afterwards, however, the department learned that R. Kelly's management had not been made aware of this agreement, and that he had departed the country as planned. We are taking legal advice on this matter.
We apologise to R. Kelly's many South African fans for this unfortunate situation, but remain confident that our current line-up will do justice to Madiba's legacy of peace, unity and reconciliation.
We also know that R. Kelly remains a firm supporter of the Nelson Mandela Sport & Culture Day and the Unite campaign.
For further information, please contact:
Mack Lewele at the Department of Arts & Culture
Cell: 082 450 5076
Tel: 012 441 3083
