Comics' Choice Awards
CCA – 2019 Pan African Winner
Savanna Comics’ Choice Awards celebrates the best of Africa’s comedic talent.
In partnership with Savanna Premium Cider, Chatz Connect, Kaya FM 95.9 and Channel24
Savanna Comics' Choice Awards celebrates the best of South Africa's comedic talent.
Sunday, 8 September 2019 - Last night saw the Savanna Comics' Choice Awards, an unequalled celebration of African comedy excellence, mark its 9th spectacular year at the beautiful Lyric Theatre in Johannesburg. It is the one night of the year where comedians, friends and fans of comedy come together to see who the comics of the continent have voted for as the best among them.
The CCA Yellow Carpet is always a highlight. Celebrities, comics, agents, promoters and media leaders were spotted making their way past the cameras and microphones to their seats for the anticipated show. The CCAs award show delivers sketch, music, dance and stand-up, in between handing out the best-looking award statues in South Africa.
Each year the Savanna Comics' Choice Awards sets the standard for premium comedy production. This ninth edition, themed "Funny Money", was no exception. "Funny Money" is an original musical show where a young hero comes to Jozi to realise his dream of becoming a comedian. He navigates the treacherous and thrilling world of clubs and corporates, managers and agents – all in pursuit of Funny Money. The show had comedians and industry types rolling in the aisles and cheering as they recognised familiar characters and situations.
A stellar team – writers Virgil Prins, Dillan Oliphant and Thapelo King Flat Mametja, directors Neels Claasen and Lwazi Mngoma, created the production with the score by Fabian Sing and puppets by Kosie Smit.
The real stars of the show, however, were the 12 magnificent Waldo statuettes, created by master craftsman, David Bolam. With over 360 registered comedians eligible for the awards, taking home a Waldo means the industry has put you in the top 3.3% of the profession.
The rarest Waldo of them all, with voting in 14 countries, was the hotly contested Savanna Pan African Comic of the Year Award. This is the third time the award has been given out and this year Long John The Comedian from Zimbabwe, clearly a crowd favourite, took home the prize.
Long John was one of five Pan-African nominees in the running to win this accolade, along with two-time winner Basketmouth (Nigeria), Kansiime Anne Entertainer (Uganda), Chingliz (Zambia) and Alfred Kainga (Zimbabwe). All of the nominees were flown to South Africa and hosted by Savanna Premium Cider and the awards team.
“Nurturing comedic talent in Africa is a real passion for Savanna Premium Cider, given that dry, sharp-witted humour is part of our brand’s DNA,” says Lazola Dali, Marketing Manager: Savanna at Distell. “Comedians are the charismatic mavericks of society, which is something Savanna can relate to, as the cider that corrupted the apple. We hope to see African comedy go from strength to strength in the coming years, and the CCAs play a significant role in promoting and celebrating comedic talent.”
Chatz Connect, the CCA’s official technology partner for the second year, and Samsung Mobile SA, Chatz Connect strategic partner for 2019, jumped on board to support this year. Samsung Mobile offers a range of devices for all types of customers and generously sponsored Samsung Gear VR headsets for all of the nominees, as well as a variety of Samsung smartphones for each of the winners to take home. With Chatz Connect and Samsung Mobile, they will ensure all winners have the tech to keep them savvy and amplify their status as a CCA winner on all of their favourite social media platforms.
The Savanna Comics’ Choice Awards is deeply grateful to Savanna Premium Cider, Chatz Connect, Samsung Mobile SA, Kaya FM 95.9, Sound Stylists and Stageworks for their support.
For the first time, the SA Savanna Comics’ Choice Awards was live-streamed on YouTube and is available here https://youtu.be/mzW1upgGB80 for anyone who missed it.
Keep an eye on #SavannaCCA on social media, and you could be in line to win incredible prizes and receive content starring your favourite comedians.