Greenside Resurgence?

Greenside 2.0

The Fuss has been selected to #CreateWithCanon.

Canon South Africa has given us the pocket-friendly Canon Powershot SX600 HS to use for a couple of months; snapping image galleries to give you a look into the things we do, the things we see, the things we create, and the things we love.

Previously we gave you a look into Openroom Productions and the POST AFRICAN FUTURES exhibition. For our final #CreateWithCanon post we return to Greenside to take a look what seems like the early stages of a resurgence.

In order for something to go through a resurgence it has to have previously assumed some sort of throne which is exactly what Greenside once did. There was a stage in my life where I’d frequent the Greenside strip from Wednesday through to Sunday. Each night was packed with vehicles parked from the end of Greenway Avenue to the other side of Gleneagles. I even gave the strip pet name which expressed my love/hate relationship with it – The Boulevard Of Smoke And Broken Mirrors.

The surburb was booming and I got to ride the wave when the manager of Gin gave me my ‘big break’ by giving me a weekly DJ residence. As much as most of the music I played consisted of 128 BPM Beatport Top 100 tracks, the residency peaked my interest in DJing and music. I literally learned how to DJ during those couple of months of my residency. Zac Efron would be proud.

But all that goes up must eventually come down and a combination of the Greenside Residents Association, the rise of Braam, and the revival of Melville resulted in Greenside losing it’s title as Joburg’s Infamous Party Suburb. The complexity of the strip was neatly documented in this video by JHBLive.

In recent months – probably taking cues from the global phenomenon – Greenside has seen a change with the launch of various craft and artisanal food establishements. There’s Trio Cafe on Greenway Avenue, The Greensider Market replaced what was a hardware store, and Gin matured into what is now The Artisan (which serves the best nacho’s I’ve ever tasted).

Besides for the food, the most exciting development on the strip is the hosting of live entertainment events. DJing has taken a back seat as various promoters have opted to host live music events throughout Greenside. The Artisan host the jazz-swing sounds of the Marcus Wyatt Trio every Sunday Afternoon. Gad De Combes has launched You Are Here which is a weekly event at Bob Rock’s where he hosts acoustic acts every Saturday evening. Froth Mob hosts an open mic night every Wednesday at Mish Mash filled with Beatboxers, Emcees, Breakdancers, Poets and anyone who has the courage to take the mic at Bring It To The Cypher. Mish Mash also plays host to The Saturday Mash Up hosted by OBT entertainment with a variety of acts performing outdoors with fires to keep you warm.

Greenside is definitely changing and it’s a transformation which has my full support. Now if only we could see the return of Jozi On Fire.

Check out some of the images I shot on the strip below and be sure to visit Greenside 2.0 for yourself.

The Artisan