Keeping up with Lloyiso's travel diary

Multi-award winning South African singer Lloyiso has been taking the country by storm with his recent The Elephant in the Room shows charting across Cape Town, Gqeberha and Johannesburg. 

In partnership with Stella Artois, Lloyiso’s first national headline tour gets its name and inspiration from the artist’s passion for melodic poetry, his clan name "Ndlovu", meaning elephant, as well as the English idiom about a well-known topic everyone is too uncomfortable to address.  

Keeping up with the jet-setting songster, we find out what goes into his love for travel sites around the globe.

How did you manage the stress of your first show?

It was very stressful. For two years we've been planning, conceptualising and figuring out the best ways to do it. I wanted to give people a really good production. We always look to international acts who come to South Africa to put on these really big productions, that is the kind of experience people must have when they come to a Lloyiso show.

What can new fans expect when they watch your shows?

A heavenly experience. All I can say is that I've got the best musicians playing for me, a five-piece band with the best stages. We've got all the lights and visuals — all the drama!

But you can also expect a story of my life, a small-town boy who went to Idols at 16 to the star that I am now. It's a journey on who Lloyiso is.

What has been your greatest highlight in connecting with fans while on tour?

I've realised my fans are such positive people, and it speaks to the performances I have. That's what I love about what I'm doing is I'm making a positive impact. All I see are smiles and happy tears. My number one aim is to make a positive impact in the world.

Three essentials I have when touring are ... my cologne, which really helps a lot with anxiety and smelling good. I always smell good. If I don't smell good then I stress out. I don't pack honey, I know a lot of musicians pack honey for their voice, but I feel like I have strained my voice enough that it doesn't crack any more.

I also pack underwear and my ID or passport.

Three ways to describe my travel personality are ... calm, on time and ready to do my thing.

My hometown is ... Summerstrand. When I used to stay there I always went to the beach. It was a calming place for me.

New York was a thrilling experience. It was my first international travel destination to sign a deal with Republic Records. It was a thrilling experience. I enjoyed the nightlife, the people and the atmosphere was insane.

Bungee jumping was the most adventurous thing I've done while travelling. I was very scared to do it, but we were going home, so we thought of doing something crazy before we finished the trip.

I'm always in awe of Cape Town. Every time I land I love seeing the mountains and the sea. It calms me. It's a bit expensive, but I love the atmosphere and the clean air. Especially the different experiences like the restaurants. I love their seafood.

PE has the friendliest people you could ever meet. You could meet the nicest person at an ATM, and you know how rigid people get at ATMs. I have yet to meet nicer people even though others might disagree.