Rainbow Kitten Surprise Is Heading To South Africa

Genre-defying, live sensations – Rainbow Kitten Surprise – are heading to South Africa this March as part of their world tour. Their tour includes a show at the beautiful Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens on 10 March 2023 (SOLD OUT), and a performance at Johannesburg's Marks Park, Emmarentia on 11 March 2023.

About Rainbow Kitten Surprise

Rainbow Kitten Surprise recently released the emotionally charged track, Work Out, marking the band's first new music in nearly two years. The song's beautiful melody line and the effervescent vibe is a stark juxtaposition to its poignant lyrics about the difficult relationships – of all sorts – that people struggle with. Work Out arrived alongside a lyric video, handwritten by RKS frontperson Ela Melo.

As if channelling another dimension where genres simply don't exist, Rainbow Kitten Surprise finds harmony in unpredictability – weaving together lyrical poetry, hummable melodies, and a rush of instrumental eccentricities. Now boasting over 1 billion global streams across platforms, the band first began building their devoted fanbase with independent albums "Seven + Mary" (2013) and "RKS" (2015). Arriving in 2018, the band's breakout full-length debut for Elektra, "How to: Friend, Love, Freefall."

Rainbow Kitten Surprise is Ela Melo (lead vocals), Darrick "Bozzy" Keller (guitar, vocals), Ethan Goodpaster (lead guitar, vocals), Charlie Holt (bass, vocals), Jess Haney (drums).

Supporting Acts

Support acts for the Rainbow Kitten Surprise South African tour have been announced with Desmond & The Tutus performing at the Cape Town show; and Spoegwolf, Shortstraw, and Mann Friday confirmed for the Johannesburg show.

Spoegwolf is an award-winning Alternative Rock group from the Western Province, with over a decade of experience (on the road and in the studio). 10 chart topping, even record breaking albums and a work ethic that has earned them widespread respect throughout the industry. They have gained a cult following that stretches from Amsterdam to Alberton. They are the first and only Afrikaans language artists to reach No. 1 on Apple Music's Top Albums chart for All Genres (an achievement they have repeated several times). And they are known for laying waste to any stage they come across.

Shortstraw has established themselves as one of the biggest bands in South Africa with multiple hits across radio. Their career has seen them nominated in the category ‘Best Indie’ at the 2014 MTV Africa Music Awards. As well as the category ‘Best Rock Album’ at the prestigious South African Music Awards (SAMAs) for their albums ‘Youthless’ in 2016, and ‘Those Meddling Kids’ in 2018 respectively. Upon its release in 2015, ‘Youthless’ debuted at #1 on the SA iTunes Chart. And in 2017, ‘Those Meddling Kids’ debuted at #2 on the Apple Music Alternative Chart. Shortstraw’s sixth full length studio album, ‘Fine thanks, and you?’ was released in April of last year.

Alternative rock group, Mann Friday, is the brainchild of Zimbabwean-born musician and entrepreneur Rob Burrell. With a catalogue of songs and albums that span across their 25-year career, Mann Friday released their most recent single, Fight For Me towards the end of 2022 and saw the music video for the track receiving multiple international film festival awards and nominations. The innately anthemic single, Caravan in the Mist, a buoyantly confident song with a tender origin story, was released last week with both these singles teasing the imminent release of their sixth album, Bridgenorth Road.