Mamakashaka & Friends with Nandi Dlepu
Nandi Dlepu is about as known for her iconic parties as she is for keeping things fresh and unexpected. So when the time came to launch her new venue, Mamakashaka & Friends in Johannesburg, she threw the event we least expected: a quiet reading party. Rather than the typical launch party festivities, the venue opened with careful intention, setting the tone for its considered approach to events.
Nandi’s work has been a crucial part of the culture for years as the brains behind legendary happenings like Pantone Sundays, Feel Good Series, UMI: Our Music Festival, and Bloom Org. Famous for her pop-up events, Nandi has just put down roots at 5 De Beer Street in Braamfontein, the new HQ for her marketing agency, Mamakashaka. During the week the venue operates as a private co-working cafe for Nandi’s team and a couple of creative friends, with the prospect of opening up to other creatives in the future. After hours, the space’s social calendar features everything from Nandi’s latest big party to intimate live podcast recording sessions with an audience.
“On one hand, it’s inspired by my intention to create with others and on the other hand the intention is to build a creative home that offers an array of music, fashion, literature and wellness inspired but not limited to experiences,” she says.
The site was once home to Great Dane, a stalwart in the Joburg party scene for years, housed in one of the oldest surviving buildings in Braam. When the bar closed its doors, Nandi was enlisted to reimagine the space as Spotify’s Greasy Tunes Cafe. Now, she’s revamped it once more, turning the grimy-yet-beloved Great Dane dance floor into a bright, airy space that inspires creativity, collaboration and connection while still preserving its role as an essential stop on a night out. "We stripped and rebuilt a beloved institution to create what I hope will become a creative sanctuary,” she says. “We’re feeling out the space, responding to how guests navigate it and adding additional nuances as we go along.”
As is South African tradition, Mamakashaka & Friends kicks off the weekend on a Thursday, but as is Nandi tradition, it’s not your average Phuza Thursday. The venue’s First Thursdays offering is Bookish, a reading party inspired by the hit event Reading Rhythms in New York where attendees bring a book and dedicate an hour to reading in silence.
This concept led to a collaboration with TOASTED, Joburg’s favourite toasted cheese makers, for a monthly Sunday book date. “We share the same love and appreciation for community,” says Marea Lewis, TOASTED founder. “It’s about getting book lovers together in a chilled space to bond over books, read, share and feel like you can have a solo date.” The success of these events speaks to the dynamism of the space, able to switch from cocktails and DJs to toasties and books overnight.
Mamakashaka & Friends ends the work week with intention, hosting their wine and hip-hop event Wine Down every Friday evening. Wine-ish, a business that honours small and black-owned wine brands and female winemakers, offers a curated selection of wines, sipped while listening to open4mat, a vinyl-playing DJ collective.
“We want to provide spaces for people to enjoy wine in a relaxed yet educational way,” say Wine-ish owners Palesa Mapheelle and Hlumelo Williams. “Some wine bars can be intimidating and it feels like you have to know your stuff, but here, you get to enjoy it however you feel like it and interact with us.”
At Nandi-run party, guest collaboration is key. Since 2018, the pop up party Pantone Sundays has invited guests to shape the atmosphere by dressing in their Sunday best, each party themed to a specific colour. Now at Mamakashaka & Friend’s new event, Cocktails + Playlists, they’re entrusted with the music. On Saturdays the venue hands the music selection over to its patrons with a modern twist on the jukebox: a QR code that grants access to the Spotify playlist. The concept could be chaotic, but the music that permeates a Saturday at 5 De Beer is consistently good, reflecting the dedicated and tasteful following Nandi has cultivated.
But while Nandi knows how to throw parties, her aspirations for 5 De Beer transcend the typical party venue experience. “The event space is thriving in Johannesburg,” she shared during an interview on the CNR JUTA & DE BEER podcast recently. “We could always do with a bit more variation: we are over-grooved.”
Nandi wanted to create a physical landmark where like-minded people can gather, both with and without a specific event calling them in. “I want to be able to just walk into a place that exudes the things I need it to exude,” she says. “I don’t want to have to wait for a particular event to tap into that joyful moment.”
As Mamakashaka & Friends continues to evolve its vibrant event lineup, it remains more than just a venue—it's a hub for connections and creativity. As the welcoming sign at the entrance states: “Where creative friends meet, where creative friends are made.”
Words by Andie Reeves for Letterhead
Photos by Mamakashaka & Friends, Margz with Ramz, Refiloe Moloi, Slay Daddy DJ & Wine-ish