eBusiness Weekly
Leslie Mupeti
The only choreographer in Zimbabwe to have a whole music video to be played on Trace Africa, John Cole(JC), is synonyms with excellence and success. Leslie Mupeti (LM) had a chance to sit down with him to learn how he is going about brand building as a choreographer and what he has in store for his fans. Enjoy the interview.
LM: How did you get into dance?
JC: Dance and choreography was out of necessity. Becoming a dancer was the first stage. After watching “You got served” and after hearing a couple of things about dance and the fact that I couldn’t play cricket anymore. Other than that it was really brought about by curiosity, passion and love. I was into breakdance at first and that’s where it all started from. The fact that I couldn’t play cricket anymore was heartbreaking so dance ended up becoming an outlet for me.
LM: Do you have any influences in the industry?
JC: That’s a tough one . . . but I would say Usher is a guru who has transcended into this whole larger than life being so yes, I feel like in a way Usher. Watching anime and a lot of Chris Brown has also been a source of inspiration for me. A lot of things give me inspiration to be the choreographer that I am today. It’s not like one specific thing like music or dance or whatever. It’s different little elements in life that make the wholesomeness of my influence.
LM: How do you manage to separate yourself from the competition? What’s the importance of branding in entertainment?
JC: I had a conversation with myself and this conversation was on how unique John Cole needed to be to become what he is right now. So it took a couple of back and fourths with myself and I came to an important conclusion. To be unique you need to understand everything around you.
You need to be able to embrace everything around you and by taking on everything around you, you tend to be able to create a form of strategy, practicality and logic around you. With that, I told myself to work differently, harder and smarter than everyone else. One of the first steps for me was to headline a show.
Before me, dancers never used to headline shows, that was only reserved for musicians. To be able to achieve that I started improving my act and eventually I graduated from being “many more” to a headlining act. It was all about me being me and sharing my God given talent with everyone else.
LM: We live in an internet and social media age where everything is moving online. How important was social media in your growth as a dancer?
JC: Recently we touched about 40k followers on Facebook and looking back about a year and half ago we had about 1 or 2k followers. My Instagram had about 5k and now we sit at 37 000 followers. The growth has been tremendous. That was a result of strategy and putting in a lot of hours of work.
This meant uploading the right pictures which best describe what I do best and putting the right captions which best describe what and how I do best. Eventually the following came and by God’s grace I became the first and only choreographer in Zimbabwe to get verified on Facebook. That was a huge feat for us and it rattled the whole entertainment industry. So in summary you have to be real and put in the work. The following will come.
LM: What is your definition of success?
JC: It’s simple. If you started out at 1 and today you’re at 20 then you’re successful. Success isn’t what you’ve accumulated at the end. It’s actually the journey to get to that end point. To be able to handle the trials and tribulations, the negativity, the positivity, everything you have been doing as a creative wherever you are in life. That’s success for me. Success for me is being able to do something when you know you can fail, but you still go ahead and do it then succeed eventually.
LM: As a public figure and influencer, how do you maintain your privacy?
JC: Privacy is key man. As a creative, your private life must be private. I’m John Cole, I entertain the world but the world shouldn’t know about John Cole the father, John Cole the husband or John Cole the brother. I can give you bits and pieces about whatever makes sense but that’s for me to reveal to the world. If I don’t need to reveal anything, I will not talk about it because you cannot expose your family to the negative elements of social media like trolling and toxicity. Your private life should be kept private. My fans want John Cole the entertainer so what I do at home is a different ball game altogether.
LM: You have worked with big brands like Amara Brown, Winky D and Jah Prayzah. What did you learn by working with them?
JC: Working with Winky D, Amara Brown, Jah Prayzah, Alick Macheso, Sulumani, Salma Sky from Zambia and many other brands is quite amazing. I can definitely tell you for a fact that it’s great because you learn a lot of stuff, you observe and you become a better creative. Working with such big names, what they do rubs off on you.
Working with musicians you learn how to write music, how to conduct music, how to produce and how to handle your business as a creative. If you work with great people and you don’t learn from them then you as a whole will not grow. Everything is about God’s time. I wasn’t playing with the big boys and girls but eventually I got there through hard work, consistency, work ethic, professionalism and knowing when to fold and walk away. Opportunities come once in a lifetime, take it, work hard and be consistent.
LM: You were part of the glamorous Dani and Ego wedding celebrations in the country which saw Nigerian Superstar Davido flying in Zim. How were you able to pull it off?
JC: I was just doing my job. For me, I just do the job that I am contracted or hired to do. I didn’t know about Davido flying in until much later on. So my job was to do what I do but at a higher level.
I was never told about Davido coming and I never changed anything about my performance. I have worked under pressure so many times. Many instances I have been given 48 hours to come up with dance choreographies for music videos. I have done choreographies for music videos on the spot and those songs then went on to become hits. I know how to work and deliver under pressure.
LM: What do you think about the local entertainment industry and what do you think needs to be improved?
JC: Man, this has always been a lifetime question. We need a lot of corporate support from individuals, government, everyone. As dance we are making progress because back then dancers never used to headline shows.
It was only reserved for musicians. Now people are realising that dancers can do the same level of performance as any other musician. For example I have a band with guitarists and drummers . . . I operate differently from your ordinary dancers, but ultimately we need a lot of support and structures.
LM: Any advice for young upcoming dancers and entertainers in general?
JC: Anyone wanting to go into the industry, already in or wherever you are in your life or career, it doesn’t matter if you’re an accountant or an artiste, if you have a dream and you want to achieve that dream, only you can stop yourself from achieving it.
Only you can be successful, only you can be you and there’s only one you so when you want to do something, be you, be great, be amazing and hold on to your dream until you achieve it, because at the end of the day no one is coming to do it for you.
If you have a talent in whatever shape or form, you could be the best accountant in the world, the best dancer, best videographer or best producer. Just do it to the best of your ability and be professional. That’s all there is to it.
LM: So what projects are you working on currently and what must we look forward to from you?
JC: Currently I’m working on the Tapira brand with Mabel Butler. I’m also working on some music in terms of collaborations, some international, local and regional. I’m also doing a bit of some acting, MC work and hosting a couple of shows.
We are also doing Public Relations and media work for a couple of artists and videography work. It’s a lot to look forward to.
LM: Where can we find you on social media?
JC: You can visit our website on www.johncoleofficial.com or JohnCole on Facebook (with a blue tick on the side). Instagram it’s JohnColeOfficial. TikTok it’s @JohnColeOfficial and Twitter it’s @IamJohnCole. Every other streaming platform it’s John Cole and you can look for my music on there.
Leslie Mupeti is a graphic designer and brand strategist. He can be contacted for feedback on [email protected] or +263 785 324 230. His Twitter and Facebook is @lesmupeti
