one year of verve
How much can happen in a year? Four seasons, fifty two weeks, three hundred and sixty five days. A year is just a measure of time
For us, a year changed everything. Last year this this time Ntsika and I set out on this journey. In the space between his birthday and mine, we birthed something. 9 months of planning, culminated in an an Instagram post.
'Verve - the spirit or enthusiasm that embodies and artistic endeavour'. We get asked all the time, "what does Verve mean, is it a real word?"
And yes, we can and do quite the definition. It aptly describes the intention behind what we are doing. We have set out to document the spirit of the city, and the creatives that make up that spirit.
But that definition doesn't quite encapsulate the full length and breadth of VERVE.
This past year has been a journey of exploration. Exploring the city, exploring the scene, exploring the nature of creativity. Exploring our craft through learning about, and from, other creatives.
This past year has been an adventure. Achieving what we had set out to do, and accepting that we have so much yet to achieve
The VERVE family has grown, and so have we. I mentioned last time that VERVE is bigger than just us - but what intimidates me is that we have no idea just how big.
When we started, we often asked ourselves the question, "Is that VERVE?" What I now realise is that we will never truly know the bounds to the answer.
We're still learning at every step of the way. Plodding forward on this road we set out on, sailing uncharted seas.
And we have all of you to thank for keeping us company on this journey, and showing us the way forward.
This year has been the first of many to come. We look forward to where the rest will take us. And we are excited to have you here with us along the way.
- Jeriah
“Let your joy be in your journey - not some distant goal.”
There are many moments where I’ll have to pause and wrap my head around how much this platform we’ve created has grown and bettered my life.
Not many know, but before the birth of VERVE, I had really been going through a dark phase in my life.
Coming back from the Eastern Cape, after the passing of my loving grandfather, I realised I was tired of being in this gloomy state. I knew for me to finally heal, I needed to set out and do something meaningful in my life. That’s where my brother, Jeriah, came in, and we set out to make this dream of mine a reality.
And I thank my ancestors for always watching over me. They were graceful enough to have us unexpectedly meet our younger brother, Vuyo, and the three of us worked long and endless nights to manufacture this wonderful space for creatives of all kinds.
And over this past year, we’ve seen so much. We’ve been able to speak to the most imaginative musicians who have blown us away with their gifts. We’ve gazed at the works of the brightest visual artists. We’ve seen the fire blaze behind the eyes of the best photographers, itching to get that perfect shot.
We’ve experienced the most unique theatre performances in the most gorgeous spaces. We’ve seen filmmakers showcase their incredible motion pictures that they’ve worked tirelessly towards. We’ve literally just come back from a night out witnessing an awesome Breakdance battle. It’s just been so much we’ve experienced in just 365 days.
We have massive goals we’ve set out to achieve for VERVE. However, the one thing I’ve truly enjoyed the most is the journey. I’ve enjoyed realising how important this platform has become for the many creatives we’ve worked with. And the best part about it, is it hasn't even felt like work. They’ve now become our friends that have hopped along our journey and vice versa. It’s a beautiful feeling.
To know that no-one taught us how to start and run a magazine, yet we’ve come this far is glorious to me.
We’ve come so far and we have a further journey ahead of us. I personally thank everyone who has aided us along this journey, sharing their stories with us, sharing our Instagram content, collaborating with us, and for just even reading our articles.
I still have yet to wrap my head around how far we’ve come. But I thank my brothers, my ancestors, and the community for helping bring my vision to life.
A Voice For The Voices.
Ntsika Novoyi