South African singer-songwriter in a busy 'Transition'

Lizz Kalo on the set of the music video for her song "Transition" / Courtesy of Marco vom Bovert

By Daniel J. Springer

When Lizz Kalo says she's busy, she means it.

The South African artist's star has shone even brighter under the stress of both her studies and the pandemic. As well as continuing her music career and taking her performance and arts market platform Creative Social nationwide, she's also enrolled in an accelerated MBA program.

April saw the release of "Transition," her first studio single since dropping "Y.O.U." in November 2020. The single itself is an R&B gem dripping with emotion and sensuality, with the beat produced by South African beatmaker Phreaky and the mixing and mastering done by Andrew Vlasblom of Kindle Records in Gwangju.

In the lyrics, Kalo's voice poignantly discusses the alienation, isolation and utter frustration of this pandemic era that has touched us all, most notably young people coming into their prime. For a twist, she also spits a few bars of hip-hop lyrics to complete the circle.

Last Friday, Kalo and her crew of collaborators dropped a new video to accompany the single, all shot and produced in Seoul spots that a lot of foreign punters will recognize. Directed by Will LeForestier, the video bounces around different locations and foreign-owned businesses in Itaewon and Haebangchon, notably The Living Room and The Hidden Cellar as well as around Mount Nam. Kalo noted that visually, "The story revolves around me while jumping back and forth in time and showcasing interactions between characters."

Lizz Kalo, second from left, on the set of the music video for her song "Transition" / Courtesy of Marco vom Bovert

Regarding the production with LeForestier and the other actors and extras in the video, Kalo noted that scouting, writing and filming took a "tough" three months.

"[LeForestier] basically liked my music and said he wanted to do a video with me, and he kept saying that for a while. So I was like 'yeah, yeah, we'll do it,'" she said. Finally, after a long wait, Kalo committed to the project and buckled down with LeForestier to find the people and spots for the shoot.

While the scouting, writing, filming and other work with the video were certainly laborious processes, Kalo herself notes a few small dance moves featured therein were maybe the toughest. "My friend Jordan Mathis provided me with some choreography and I was struggling. I have no dancing bones in my body," she noted with a laugh. "But I think we executed it beautifully."

Kalo is not ready to rest just yet. The artist has been bringing together a diverse array of artists and vendors every month in Gwangju for an art market and performance platform event called Creative Social, which she has just taken nationwide with events in Busan and Seoul.

Inspired by similar events from her homeland that present more of a community vibe, Creative Social gatherings bring artists together to perform and vendors as well to sell art, food, jewelry, clothes and whatever else is on offer. The shows feature performances from Korean and expat musicians who were mostly locally based in Gwangju at first, but the phenomenon of people traveling down from all parts of the country started to become a regular feature of the shows.

Additionally, Kalo noted that the Creative Social has also received a great reaction from young Koreans who've gotten involved, although that took a while due to language, COVID-19 and other factors. "The reaction from the Koreans has been amazing and the Korean audience is also growing organically, so I'm confident that if we remain consistent and continue to grow, we will attract more and evolve," she said.

With growth and evolution being the watchwords and artists traveling from all over down to Gwangju every month, it was high time to take the show to Busan and Seoul as well, with Creative Social doing pop-ups quarterly in all three cities going forward, the first being at Ol' 55 in Busan in early May then Seoul at The Hidden Cellar early this month.

Lizz Kalo / Courtesy of Hillel Kim

"The shows in Busan and Seoul were super successful. I was overwhelmed by the support and turnout in both places considering it was the first time hosting out there," Kalo said, adding that the support of Jasmine Escobar in Busan and Lindsey Walker in Seoul were instrumental to the respective events. "I think each city has something different to offer, which makes it hard to compare, but the standard pattern I've noticed is that people come out in numbers to support and celebrate the positive creative environment the platform fosters. I'm super grateful to see the impact [the event] has made within just a year."

One aspect of these shows to note is that they often feature a fundraiser for different charities or people in need, with the latest edition in Seoul having raised funds for the food assistance program in the process.

With all of this happening, the only question to ask is what's next.

"I'm currently working on my sophomore album scheduled to drop in 2023, working with multiple producers including Phreaky, American producer Julian Overton, South African based Nigerian Female producer Oray_AD and Korean musician Kim Seul-gi," Kalo said.

After a bit of a hiatus for summer, Creative Social will return in September in Gwangju along with shows in Busan and Seoul in October and November respectively.

Any artists or vendors that would like to get involved in upcoming Creative Social events can email or message Lizz Kalo on social media. Visit fb.com/lizzkalo or @lizz_kalo on Instagram for more information about Kalo's music, or follow @thecreativesocial.0 on Instagram for more information about Creative Social.

Daniel J. Springer is the creator, producer, and host of "The Drop with Danno" on GFN based in Gwangju, broadcasting nightly from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m.