I can’t believe that’s my restaurant’ — J’Something excited to open Artistry in Sandton

It's an exciting time for J'Something because 2023 is kicking off with just the right notes.

In celebration of everything he believes in and is passionate about where genuine artistry is concerned, J' Something is gearing up to open a new establishment called Artistry set to operate late this month. 

He tells TshisaLIVE bringing people together to enjoy a meal, music and the arts was always the end goal, and this dream that has been in the works for two years is finally coming true. 

Being someone who stood the test of time himself, with more than a decade in the music industry, he and his co-founder have found a way to curate an experience where three worlds collide into one beautiful, magical place.

“It's a different ball game because the first one was a licensing deal together with Sun International, so they used the rights to my name and creative ideas and I had to [spend] x amount of time there. Artistry is a whole other ball game. I have a co-founder, I own it, I've invested in it, so it's a whole different ball game.”

He said Artistry has three floors that bring different elements to the experience of the place.

“This is a place unlike anything else I've ever been to or seen. This is out of a vision or desire to bring soothing entertainment together in a way that would really create focus and respect the art behind everything.”

“So it's three stories, the rooftop is a kitchen and a bar with an outdoor swimming pool, and that's where we focus on food and the artistry behind food. Everything about Artistry is celebrating the classics, so nothing trendy, it's all about celebrating things that stood the test of time.

“You go down a floor in the elevator and you arrive at 100ft of theatre where we showcase music, comedy, movie premieres, music video shoots, talks, poetry, that's the heart of Artistry in my opinion, that's where we get to showcase the art behind Artistry.”

He said the last level is were the party will be at.

“The third level after you've been at the theatre is the after-party bar, so cocktails, and DJs and networking. The idea behind the iconic journey we are curating is come for dinner, watch a piece of entertainment that would be unforgettable and almost priceless and then go down to the after-party bar and celebrate.”

“I've always wanted to create something that's worth bringing food and entertainment together on a personal level. I don't cook because I want to be a chef, I cook because I love food and cooking for others because its an amazing act of service. I'm very excited about what we are doing because it feels like what we are doing I've put my heart, soul and character into it, but it's not about me, it's about the artistry of things.”

In 2019, J'Something closed his Pretoria restaurant, Something's Cooking by J — but only because he wants to give another city the opportunity to enjoy what he has to offer.

In a three-part post shared on Instagram, the Mi Casa frontman confirmed to TshisaLIVE at the time that he had decided to close the restaurant, which was based at Times Square Casino. 

“Dearest Pretoria Fam. We have closed the doors to Something's Cooking by J at Times Square Casino. The time has come for us to expand this experience and to give another big city the opportunity to share their talents and share in a home with me,” he said.

J'Something detailed how Mi Casa is working on their sixth album which will be released this year. 

“Mi Casa, we've spent four to five months in Europe last year and we've been working on new music. It's set to start rolling out this year. We are going to start releasing new singles this year. I can't share the name of the album yet, but it's the best album that I think we've ever made. It's the best place we've ever been in as a band. We are also doing a global release, it's being captained by Universal Europe.”