Pro stands for a professional

By: Thobeka Magcai

Stability and focus are keys to success for Soweto-born rap artist Linda ’Pro’ Mkhize who, during this Friday Artists Spot with Sowetan Online, shares his philosophy on maintaining equilibrium.

Describing himself as a bit of a loner, Pro is career oriented and has been pondering his future as an artist and businessman.

Together with a team of about 75 people, he has launched a clothing label called "Dankie San!!", loosely translated as "Thanks Dude".

The design studio has a warehouse in Soweto. They offer a full range of clothing lines for men and women including Tshirts, Beanies, scarves, jackets, sweaters and sneakers. They hope to establish themselves as a major business venture, but have decided to take baby steps in their modus operandi.

"We don’t want to create a mechanism whereby there is too much hoo-ha (hype) and the supply is pathetic," Pro explains.

Pro has come along way since his time in the underground music scene and his professional career in 2005. He has four albums to his name: "Heads and Tales", released in May 2005, "Imbizo Street Mixtape Vol. 1", September 2005, "DNA" in November 2006 and the latest "Dankie San" in November 2007.

Demonstrating the kind of artist that he is not, Pro yells, throwing his hands in the air and says: "I’m not that kind of artist that is loud. I think it just looks too desperate".

His life lessons are: Street knowledge, pride in your origins, "if you are held high by your society, learn how to give back", extend your level of knowledge, including knowledge of self, and to know what’s going on around you, previously, currently and what is about to come.

Pro carefully monitors what he puts across, although he feels he doesn’t have enough time in his lyrics to put across what he really would like to, due to word constraints.

So, he says, "it’s either you tolerate me or ung’thola later," (meaning you either tolerate me or get me later).

"We believe in movement, we believe in self-empowerment, we believe in uhuru.
"But, beyond anything, it is just music that expresses the current era - or how the youth is feeling at this point."

On his Career: Soweto artist Pro aims to project emotional maturity through his music and a business approach to his new fashion label promoting local youth culture. "I’m not that kind of artist that is loud. I think it just looks too desperate."

Life Consciousness lessons to learn from:

- Street knowledge - Pride in your origins

- If you are held high by your society, learn how to give back

- Extend your level of knowledge, including knowledge of self

- Know what’s going on around you, previously, currently and what is about to come

Story by Sowetan