Whatever happened to TGIF? Maybe it’s a hyper-millennial throwback at this point, but the sentiment behind clocking the fuck off and heading to your weekly spot to decompress and hang with your friends remains forever relevant. And in a post-lockdown world where remote jobs and work-from-home have blurred the boundaries between workplace and social space, the culture of bringing in the weekend feels more than relevant — it feels essential. After Five, a new Cape Town inner-city block party by the team behind Airy Collective, is making its debut at Texas, built around the transitional moment when the city starts to loosen its tie. Or, in this day and age, sign off.
“The transition after work feels like this really interesting window where the city shifts energy and people are ready to let go, connect and experience something outside the everyday,” says Airy Collective founder Nana Anazodo. “It’s more intentional than just going out on a Friday or Saturday — it’s well curated, affordably priced and the people in our community deeply appreciate the space we’re building. We welcome each other with open arms, no matter who you are.”
Bringing together music, games and nightlife in what it describes as a “playground for the grown and curious,” After Five is a place where, one minute, you could be lost in the music, and the next be pulled into some kind of side-quest. “For us, the games, mascots and unexpected moments are part of the world we’re creating,” Anazodo explains. “They’re there to spark curiosity, interaction and a sense of play while the music drives the energy.” And these aren’t intended as gimmicks for the launch alone: “These elements won’t just happen once and then disappear; they will be part of every lineup, becoming something people associate us with.”
But at the centre of After Five is music, and the party is building an enticing sonic identity rooted in African dance music but loose enough to traverse the borders of its various genres. “For me, it was about reflecting how broad and interconnected African electronic music actually is, rather than trying to put it into one box,” says Anazodo.
“Amapiano, house, gqom and everything around them are constantly influencing each other,” she continues, “and After Five is truly a celebration of that movement, energy and exchange.” The inaugural lineup follows that philosophy, and it’s impressively stacked with African dance music’s current vanguard of pioneers and selectors. There’s Surreal Sessions doing a double B2B with Omagoqa and Chustar, Joburg Gqom princess Likkyliks, genre deviants Not A She and Shakes, alongside Azee Green, Sigwabs, Nsimbi and Solo.
Anazodo says the team is thinking about “energy, identity and the kind of community we want to build around After Five.” The lineup moves between scenes and sounds, reflecting the playful potential of After Five’s environment. “Bringing together our lineup reflects a culture that’s open-minded, locally rooted and unafraid to move between sounds,” she says. “For us, After Five is about creating space for different scenes and people to meet, discover something new and leave feeling part of something.”
Anazodo wants After Five to become that weekly spot — a place where people can discover music, meet each other and just be present. “I’d love to build a community around After Five that feels open, creative and genuinely connected,” she says. “We don’t care who you are or where you’re from, we are all made from the same flesh and bone and I want us all to embrace each other.”
And the ambition doesn’t stop at Texas. Anazodo sees the concept eventually travelling across South Africa and beyond, at a moment when global attention on the country’s electronic music is already growing. “The dream would be to take this party and concept all over South Africa and the world,” she says. “All eyes are on SA regarding what we bring to the Electronic Music scene and I want our event to be an essential part of that scene.”
For Anazodo, that expansion is also about something more fundamental than simply getting After Five into more cities. “I want us to have ownership of our sounds and for the world to see that we can manage and grow our IP. Of course our community will be a big part of the process, so I would also want the audience to influence where it goes and what it becomes.” The first edition sets the template. It’s an invitation to clock out and come play. TGIF!
Tickets for After Five are available via Quicket. Photography courtesy Airy Collective.
