Creative ways to live in the Mother City
High rents make survival in Cape Town expensive, but there are other options
Anyone who knows a little about Cape Town will tell you it’s arguably the creative capital of South Africa. After it was named a Unesco City of Design in 2017, it’s no wonder artists from everywhere flock to the Mother City.
They seek opportunity, creative energy, and work. Whether they’re searching for fashion and film, or if they want to make music, paint, act or dance, chances are they’ll find it in Cape Town.
But with the city’s high property prices and the huge demand to live here, some creatives are battling to find a place to live.
We spoke to people who have compromised with some unusual living arrangements.
Backpackers
Anita Kamya, 25, a singer-songwriter from the Eastern Cape, says it’s more than just the work opportunities that brought her here – it’s the types of art that the city celebrates, and the type of expression of that art which interests her. “I’m in tune with the sound that’s being made here. Even though I would have musical opportunities in Port Elizabeth, it’s more about the type of music being made.
“In PE the sound is influenced by traditional African music and is more indigenous. I don’t mind that but I’m in tune with the international sound you find in Cape Town. Reminds me of Erykah Badu or Robert Glasper.”
Kamya has opted to work at a backpackers in Long Street in return for free lodging, food, and wifi. “I get a free breakfast and dinner. Nothing much is different. It’s just like having people over at my house all the time. You work behind the desk in return for living here. Five shifts of eight hours, which is a standard entry-level job. My shifts vary – morning, late, night and so on. It is never the same nine to five, Monday to Friday. Sometimes I have to sacrifice weekends, which is okay because it’s all for the music.”
Kamya is thankful for her job allows her the mental freedom to focus on what she loves. When night shifts are quiet, she can write or set up a mic to record or practice. Another advantage of her arrangement is being able to live in the CBD. “If I was working a normal job I would have more money but less emotional and mental capacity to keep pushing on with music. I also love the fact that I get to live in town. It means someone is always awake and available to work.”
Her parents own property in Port Elizabeth, so she values the stability which comes from home ownership. “The feeling of knowing that you won’t have to uproot yourself any time soon is priceless and definitely worth working towards.”
Couch-surfer
Lukhanyo Mlandu, 34, who also hails from the Eastern Cape, is an assistant production manager, while also dabbling in DJing and hosting a successful monthly music event in Woodstock. When he moved out of his mother’s home he went from a stable living situation to surfing people’s couches but, according to him, it was easier to create art that way.
When he arrived in Cape Town he moved in with creative friends in Mowbray and then Rondebosch, and that was just the beginning. “I still paid rent and contributed to the household with food and electricity, but I didn’t pay a full rent, and that helped a lot.”
Mlandu now has his own place and is considering moving overseas to continue working in the creative field. “It was convenient for me to be a couch-surfer and I was exactly where I needed to be in order to make music. I wasn’t focused on relationships or anything, so living on a couch was not a problem. All we did for like a year was just produce tracks and focus on the hustle,” says Mlandu.
Many people realize that buying property isn’t easy or cheap, and Mlandu is one of them. But, he also sees the income benefits of owning your own place and being able to let it or put it on Airbnb.
While both Kamya and Mlandu agree that privacy is the main thing you miss when living in these types of co-living situations, it’s worth it when you consider the current price of property, they say.