The 2025 Jazz Wise Youth Music Business Workshop is set to bring together arts industry trailblazers for an exciting day designed to empower Mzansi’s young creatives and stars of the future on Wednesday, 17 September 2025, at the Joburg Theatre from 8:00am.
Curated as a crucial empowerment junction on the 2025 Standard Bank Joy of Jazz festival, the annual Jazz Wise event offers a packed career development programme that provides guidance, training, and networking opportunities for aspiring arts industry professionals.
The event’s programme features industry leaders, including seasoned artist managers, award winning musicians and other creative luminaries poised to participate in panel discussions, workshops and networking sessions aimed at empowering young upstarts. The 2025 Jazz Wise Youth Music Business Workshop is open to young people in High school students doing grades 9 to 12, College and University students (freshmen-seniors) and Young professionals aged between 20 to 25 years old.
The day’s proceedings will be programmed by renowned artist management consultant Mandla Selby Maseko, with a keynote address by Nomfundo Xaluva, a multi-award-winning jazz vocalist, composer and academic.
An assortment of speakers and panellists will include global marketing strategist Judith Mugeni, Lebo Lion and multi-award-winning South African photographer Neo Ntsoma. Alsoincluded will be multiple award-winning film and television writer, director and producer Busisiwe Ntintili; visionary painter Nico Phooko; jazz vocalist, composer and educator Gabi Motuba; jazz bassist and composer Benjamin Jephta; Bokang Ramatlapeng, Sifiso Dlangamandla, along with DJ, promoter and producer, Kenneth Nzama, and cultural entrepreneur Vuyo MacGlad.
Various discussions will include the following panellists:
Purpose, profit and law:
1. Musa Sono
2. Thamsanqa Khoza
3. Standard Bank
The Art of Booking:
4. Vuyo MacGlad
5. Kenneth Nzama
6. Sifiso Dlangamandla
Marketing Technologies for the Art of Jazz:
7. Judith Mugeni
8. Nadine Elie
9. Lebo Lion
Arty Jazz Expressions
10. Neo Ntsoma
11. Nico Phooko
12. Busisiwe Ntintili
Global Influences and Career Opportunities
13. Bokang Ramatlapeng
14. Benjamin Japhta
15. Gabi Motuba
“Creating a skills exchange platform like Jazz Wise is important for us as a festival because it signals our commitment to empowering young people and our confidence in the future of our country and the music industry in general. It’s a way of investing in the culture’s ability to sustain itself creatively, while it remains economically viable,” says Mantwa Chinoamadi, the CEO of T-Musicman and Producer of the Standard Bank Joy of Jazz festival.
“We continue to partner with the Joy of Jazz festival not only to avail world class musicians to perform in South Africa, but also to create a credible context for young people to network with these award-winning global industry players in a way they would otherwise struggle to realise. For us, the festival is a context for arts and culture, industrial development and youth empowerment. The Jazz Wise Youth Music Business Workshop is an example of how this is possible”, says Bonga Sebesho, head of sponsorships at the Standard Bank Group.
