Afrikaans DJ breaks boundaries through music

SHE may seem like your average Afrikaans girl but Anita Ronge is breaking down all the stereotyping walls through her DJing.

Ronge, AKA “The Duchaz”, works in the corporate industry and is a kwaito house DJ by night.

The 24-year-old Bonaero Park resident is making waves in the townships and already has a solid fan base in Tembisa.

“This is something I’ve been wanting to do since last year, so when the opportunity presented itself, I didn’t hesitate to grab it with both hands,” Ronge explained.

Ronge’s once in a lifetime chance of doing what she loved came earlier this year when she and a friend were chilling at a pub in Kempton Park.

“My friend told the manager that I wanted to DJ, so he told me to try it out, which I of course did, and the rest as they say is history.”

Playing a mix of “kwaito, tribal and commercial house”, this young and different kind of sensation is taking the DJ scene by storm. Mostly because it’s extremely rare to see a young, Afrikaans girl who comes from an Afrikaans background, (having attended Hoërskool Kempton Park), moving into the townships. But as fate would have it, this is what gives her the competitive edge.

“I remember this one time I had a gig in Tembisa. As I stepped up on stage, you could see the shock on people’s faces: a white girl coming to play house? But as soon as I started playing, the crowd warmed up and in the end was jamming to my music.”

When EXPRESS asked her mother, Annatjie, how she feels about her daughter travelling alone at night, she replied with a mother’s concern:

“Naturally, most mothers would worry about their daughter doing performances at night, especially because she has to drive herself around, regardless of where she is performing,” Annatjie said.

But Anita is quick to re-assure her mom that she is completely safe and she has nothing to worry about.

She says of her favourite place to play: “Tembisa is actually a wonderful place and I always feel safe when I go there. People are even starting to recognise me now,” she adds with excitement.

Commenting on the rareness of her interest in kwaito music: “People shouldn’t be scared to explore different cultures and lifestyles. We shouldn’t be stuck up in what we grew up with and what we know, we should instead teach ourselves to explore.”

Ronge plays at a variety of events and concerts all over the country and her next one is Mpumalanga. She will also play at the Shorts and Shades concert on November 29 at Boisantha in Tembisa.

Ronge is also involved with charity work and takes part in the annual One Man Show started by D Shimza.

“This year we are looking to collect toothbrushes and toothpaste for the less fortunate. So far we have collected 500 of each and are still looking for more donations from the public. We want to collect as many as possible.”