SA: Hunter’s announces Jacquel Culture House music incubator winner

JCH is a platform for new artists seeking success in the music industry and intends to provide aspiring artists with access to fundamental tools, resources and mentorship opportunities.

“Tresor and Sun EL-Musician are extremely influential in their unique ways and a chance to work with any of them is crazy,” Efstratiou said. “On top of that, Hunter’s and JCH just added another layer of professionalism to the project. It feels so weird but in a good way. It hits me at random times in the day, and I never really feel like I absorb it.”

Hunter’s has forged a reputation for supporting the South African music industry. At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the company sponsored the Channel O Lockdown House Party, which entertained South Africans during a period of uncertainty.

In November 2021, the brand sponsored a concert to revive the live music scene after nearly 19 months of restrictions on public gatherings. The concert, dubbed #MusicNeedsYou, took place in Johannesburg and was headlined by Cassper Nyovest and Kabza de Small. In addition, Hunter’s donated half of the ticket value (R100 000) to the Music In Africa Foundation to further support the South African music sector.

“I think there is something truly special about the synergy that music can bring,” Efstratiou added. “You can be in a room with a hundred other people of different cultures, interests, careers or even languages, but we can experience the same energy in that room. For that moment, we are all equal through the power of music. Regardless of where you are from or what you do, we can look each other in the eyes, and for that moment, we can be absorbed into a universal, musical world.” 

Efstratiou, who is a Stellenbosch University graduate, says he would like to collaborate with his fellow JCH contestants. “I have kept in contact with a few of them and we are slowly testing the waters. Music has given me an outlet that nothing else has been able to match yet,” he said.

Born and raised in East London in the Eastern Cape province, Efstratiou took up drums at the age 11. He spent the next eight years learning more instruments, producing music and deejaying. In the process, he has developed a catalogue of music that can be listened to in clubs and on radio. While he enjoys making dance music, he also has the ability to tell stories and uses his songwriting skills to accomplish this. His signature sound employs melodic figures, groovy percussion and dark basslines.