Ahhh Doo Be Doo – it was a tonic -singing along on Sunday January 19, 2026 with Freshlyground at #kbrocks Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden Kirstenbosch Summer Sunset Concerts was a tonic. The opening act was Manana. The fabulous Guy Macdonald was host.

Some of the lyrics of Doo be Doo:

“Say you want to live and love in kindness every day


Say you know the meaning of love

See every person that you meet

As every you and every me

And then I’ll know you feel the rhythm of love, love, love…”

Kindness – amen to that.

Freshyground was for formed in 2002. With some absences from performing and recording and changes in lineup, the band remains a sentinel presence in our nation, with its rousing soundtrack.

In an interview – in 2006 with me (before TheCapeRobyn) – the band spoke about Doo Be Doo initially being a ‘throw-away’ song, a ‘silly song’. In an interview with Zolani Mahola (lead singer at the time, founding member of the band) in May 2018, I asked her to reflect on that – that the song has become being elegiac and reflective. She remarked: “Yes, it does seem to more and more be more and more nostalgic – not just because it reminds people of where they were when they first heard the band and the song but I think it hearkens back to those first heady days of freedom in the new South Africa. I think there is something bittersweet about it because people associated us with the Rainbow nation dream and that’s a dream that at once seems to be slipping further away from consciousness and yet it’s still a longing that we humans have deeply ingrained in us – that need to connect and belong.”

The Kirstenbosch Summer Sunset Season is about connection, belonging, kindness; holding space for each other in a safe space. It was a bumpy festive season for us with four funerals and other happenings. Freshyground was the first Kirstenbosch concert that we have attended for 2025/2026. Looking forward to more.


The 2025/2026 Kirstenbosch Summer Sunset Season is on until March 29. Full lineup here: https://thecaperobyn.co.za/stage-kirstenbosch-summer-sunset-concerts-2025-2026/ Video here: https://www.facebook.com/share/r/16r7bvKnEK/

✳ Freshlyground at Kirstenbosch Summer Sunset Concert, Sunday January 19, 2026 . Pic: Robyn Cohen/TheCapeRobyn.