At the weekend, Cotton Fest returned to Joburg for its vibrant fifth edition, and not even the rain could stop people from attending and having fun.

This was the first time Major League DJz and Uncle Vinny performed at the youth festival since founder late musician Rikhado “Riky Rick” Makhado died in February 2022.

Riky Rick created the festival in 2019, and following his death, the musician’s wife, Bianca Naidoo, has kept his legacy alive through the continuation of Cotton Fest.

The twin DJs shared on Instagram how it brought joy to see the youth are attending the festival even after Riky Rick’s passing.

“We haven’t done Cotton Fest since the passing our cousin Riky Rick, it brings joy to our hearts that the kids are attending the event in numbers and youth has a platform to showcase their talent through his creation, where-ever he is his heart of full of joy,” they captioned a video of their performance.

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Even MC, Nomuzi Mabena - also known as Moozlie - was touched about how Riky Rick’s legacy was still living on two years after his death.

“At every single @cottonfestjhb I marvel at how he was able to bring us all together. This year in particular was really special. It really hit home for me that God keeps His promises.

“It’s been 2 years since Riky passed but the event was SOLD OUT!! And everyone was still screaming BOSS ZONKE!!” she wrote on Instagram.

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The Old Station in Newtown was filled with “cotton eaters” on Saturday ready to jam to the exciting line-up that included a mix of South Africa’s top hip hop and amapiano acts such as A-Reece, Focalistic, DJ Zinhle, DBN Gogo, DJ Lag, Emtee, Ggoldie and K.O.

Across the three stages; Nadia Nakai, Shakes & Les, Pabi Cooper, Mellow & Sleazy, Maglera Doe Boy, Major League DJz, Young Stunna and Zee Nxumalo had the crowd dancing and singing along.

IOL Entertainment