Building Bridges Internship: Meet the Candidates

We are eager to welcome the Building Bridges Internship Programme’s selected candidates, who will spend three months in Berlin learning and developing skills based on real-world international engagement. The Berlin headquarters of Paradise Worldwide is excited to welcome the interns this week. Paradise is renowned for its rights, collection, and protection, all of which will be the focus of the training programme. Each candidate will collaborate with African and German team members to develop a well-rounded knowledge base for future growth.

We partnered with the South African Music Performance Rights Association (SAMPRA) for the Building Bridges Internship Programme, which aims to provide young professionals from South Africa with a unique opportunity to gain international experience and cross-continental cultural awareness by spending three months in Berlin.

And, without further ado, we are pleased to announce that Martha Mangwani, Namakau Socika, and Sharon Ramoshaba will participate in this year’s internship programme. Each intern excels in areas including creativity, communication, conceptualization, networking, time management, and environment adaptability.

MARTHA MANGWANI 

“It has always been a dream of mine to use music as a tool to explore my strategy, creative and production skills. And this Germany Internship opportunity could have not come at a better time to not only empower myself but to showcase the awesome talent South Africa has to offer.” 

Martha studied at Monash (Foundation course in Social Sciences) in 2014-2016. From there, she went to study to the University of Johannesburg (UJ) from 2016-2018 to study BA Strategic Corporate Communication and in 2019 she studied Digital Music Composition and Production including DJ101 at Boston Media House. 

She is currently involved in a variety of projects, such as being an event manager for Fabulous Girls Drive CSI Project, broadcasting on TSHWANE FM’s show “Soulscapes” and being a DJ (La Vita/ La Vita experience). She is also a prodcuer that was part of the Women in Music South Africa (WIMSA) Searching for Paradise Compilation Competition 2022.

NAMAKAU SOCIKA 

“I am so excited to be gaining a new perspective from abroad. I cannot wait to learn the ins and outs of the music business, meet the Paradise team. I am so grateful to say the least.”

Namakau was a UX Copywriter and film producer at UMUZI Academy between 2018 and 2019. She then continued as a Copywriter for three years at King James Advertising. She still works for Open It Up Creatives as an Event Coordinator. 

She has been releasing her music through Paradise Sound System and Paradise Africa for about 2 years now. She recently became an Ambassador of Africa Rising Music Conference (ARMC). Namakau is also an artists recognized as “Namakau Star” and has worked with the likes of The Planetoids, Phola and Lordkeyyz. 

SHARON RAMOSHABA 

“I’ve always wanted to go overseas but I never thought the opportunity would come this early! Everything still feels so surreal but more than anything I am happy and grateful for this opportunity.” 

Sharon did her diploma in Public Relations at the University of South africa, and then continued studying at the University of Johannesburg to obtain a diploma in Strategic Communication. 

She also has experience as an admin Assistant and Tutor at Pat Rico Community Center and Bophelo Pele Foundation.

THE PROGRAMME

The interns will be guided throughout the programme by Berlin-based mentors who will offer guidance, information, and expertise on different parts of the music industry, including publishing, label management, distribution, and event planning. Kamo Malulila, one of the mentors and key figures of the programme, expressed his excitement about the initiative, saying, “I am thrilled beyond words for our interns embarking on this journey to Berlin for the Building Bridges internship programme, and grateful to SAMPRA and Paradise Worldwide for opening the door to such an incredible opportunity.”

BUILDING BRIDGES INTERNSHIP PROGRAMME

Through this programme, we are committed to assisting the placement of interns and helping them build an international network with like-minded individuals in the same industry hailing from different countries. In addition, the programme will give interns experience working in a different business culture, being exposed to different customs and practices, allowing for growth and a new perspective.

Once the interns head back to South Africa on the 20th of May, they will continue to gain experience and apply their newly acquired skills in their roles at the SA offices.