- Title: SOUTH AFRICA: Oscar buzz attracts Rodriguez fans to Cape Town record store.
- Date: 24th January 2013
- Summary: CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA (JANUARY 16, 2013) (REUTERS) CAPE TOWN SKYLINE CAPE TOWN STREET SIGN EXTERIOR OF MABU VINYL STORE SHOP SIGN FOR MABU VINYL SIGN IN WINDOW OF MABU VINYL MABU VINYL CO-OWNER STEPHEN "SUGAR" SEGERMAN ENTERING STORE MAN ENTERING MABU VINYL AND CONGRATULATING SEGERMAN RODRIGUEZ 'COLD FACT' CD COVER SEGERMAN WATCHING CLIP FROM 'SEARCHING FOR SUGAR MAN' ON COMPUTER CLOSE-UP OF SEGERMAN'S FACE (SOUNDBITE) (English) STEPHEN "SUGAR" SEGERMAN, MABU VINYL CO-OWNER, SAYING: "Eventually it became a search, then it became a discovery, and then it became a tour, and then it became a website, and then it became a re-releasing of Rodriguez's albums, and then it became a meeting with Malik Bendjelloul, a Swedish TV journalist who was just looking for short stories, and here we are now in 2013 and we've been honoured with an Oscar nomination. So I truly didn't intend that to happen all those years ago, but when you look back always at your life and your adventures, it makes perfect sense how you got there. It's always difficult to see forward, but this has just been a wonderful, wonderful journey." SIGN SAYING AFRICAN AND SOUTH AFRICAN MUSIC RODRIGUEZ FAN MUINUDDIN MULLAJEE SHAKING SEGERMAN'S HAND AND HUGGING HIM (SOUNDBITE) (English) MUINUDDIN MULLAJEE, RODRIGUEZ FAN, SAYING: "Rodriguez sends out a powerful message against the vulgar consumption of capital, and against the conspicuous consumption of capital. It tells us to be what we are, to live with, not with the bare minimum, to live with just what we need, and to share your bounty with others, which he has done." YOUNG WOMAN SELECTING RODRIGUEZ CD WOMAN OPENING CD CASE AND LOOKING AT CD RODRIGUEZ 'COLD FACT' CD IN CASE YOUNG WOMAN'S FACE CD INLAY SHOWING RODRIGUEZ'S NAME AND PHOTO (SOUNDBITE) (English) STEPHEN "SUGAR" SEGERMAN, MABU VINYL CO-OWNER, SAYING: "We've become this kind of minor little tourist attraction in Cape Town which is pretty cool. We have people from America, Australia and Europe coming to Cape Town, and on their itinerary is they want to come and see Mabu Vinyl because they've seen the movie and they want to pick up a Rodriguez CD, and maybe get it signed. So for us it's just been wonderful, we've got all these lovely people coming in and visiting us and looking at the shop and that's very very nice for us, that's been very good for us ." SEGERMAN HOLDING UP A RODRIGUEZ T-SHIRT JOHN LANGFORD, CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER OF BIG CONCERTS, ENTERING HIS OFFICE AND SITTING AT DESK LANGFORD SITTING AT DESK (SOUNDBITE) (English) JOHN LANGFORD, CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER OF BIG CONCERTS, SAYING: "The movie has had a major impact. We certainly couldn't have sold these number of shows without the movie. The movie catapulted him back into the limelight. And it's an incredible movie, so it's not just the fact there's a movie, it's such a good movie that thousands and thousands of South Africans have been to watch it, and they've either reminisced about what is Rodriguez or they're learning about Rodriguez. So in terms of ticket sales, we're seeing everything from black to white, young to old, it's not typically the Rodriguez fan that you would imagine."
- Embargoed: 8th February 2013 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: South Africa
- Country: South Africa
- Topics: Entertainment
- Reuters ID: LVAB7D65RMMFD5L30H3W2H8KREQF
- Story Text: Fans of American musician Rodriguez flock to Cape Town record store featured in Oscar nominated documentary 'Searching for Sugar Man'.
Fans of American musician Rodriguez have been flocking to Mabu Vinyl, a record store in the heart of Cape Town, which features in the Oscar nominated documentary 'Searching for Sugar Man'.
The documentary details the quest of two of Rodriguez's fans - Stephen "Sugar" Segerman and Craig Bartholomew Strydom - to find out what happened to the Detroit folk musician. Largely unknown in his native America, Rodriguez was hugely popular in Apartheid-era South Africa. Yet after releasing two studio albums in the early 1970s, Rodriguez withdrew from the musical limelight, leading to rumours of his death amongst his South African fans.
Segerman said that he never imagined the story of his search for Rodriguez would end in the making of an award winning film.
"Eventually it became a search, then it became a discovery, and then it became a tour, and then it became a website, and then it became a re-releasing of Rodriguez's albums, and then it became a meeting with Malik Bendjelloul, a Swedish TV journalist who was just looking for short stories, and here we are now in 2013 and we've been honoured with an Oscar nomination", he said.
Rodriguez's music continues to resonate for his fans, and the documentary's success has brought visitors from the around the world to Mabu Vinyl in order to meet Segerman and purchase Rodriguez's music.
'Searching for Sugar Man' has also boosted Rodriguez's profile, with the musician scheduled to tour South Africa in February 2013. John Langford, from Big Concerts, says the documentary has brought people of all races and ages together to celebrate Rodriguez's music.
"It's not just the fact there's a movie, it's such a good movie that thousands and thousands of South Africans have been to watch it, and they've either reminisced about what is Rodriguez or they're learning about Rodriguez. So in terms of ticket sales, we're seeing everything from black to white, young to old, it's not typically the Rodriguez fan that you would imagine", he said.
'Searching for Sugar Man' won the Special Jury Prize and the Audience Award for best international documentary at the Sundance Film Festival. It is nominated in the Best Documentary category at the 2013 Academy Awards and 2013 BAFTA awards. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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