More than a festival

Milk + Cookies Music Week returns to South Africa, thus cementing its status as more than a festival through its commitment to local talent and economic support. This year sees the introduction of the second stage, Move Mzansi, powered by Extreme

- Busi Lethole

From left: Founders Chase Freeman, Gregory K Burton Jr and Kevin Reese. Photo: Supplied by Milk + Cookies

(Supplied by Milk + Cookies)

As streaming apps begin rolling out the top tracks that defined our 2025 listening habits, it came as no surprise to me that Haitian-Canadian Grammy-winning producer and DJ Kaytranada dominated three of my year-end lists.

This got me reminiscing about how I, along with 30 000-plus of his fans across Cape Town and Johannesburg finally saw him live.

Kaytranada headlined the first-ever Milk + Cookies Festival in South Africa. A day before the Cape Town show in January, I spoke to three of the founders: Chase Freeman, marketing director; Jhordan Gibbs, who is the artist and sponsor director; and Gregory K Burton Jr, the creative director.

More recently, I caught up again with Freeman, Burton Jr and the fourth founder Kevin Reese, who is Director of Operations, to discuss not only the festival’s return but also the vision behind the Milk + Cookies Music Week (MCMW).

The festival was born in 2015 after the four friends met at Morehouse College, one of those colloquially known as historically black colleges or universities (HBCU) in Atlanta. The festival’s portfolio now includes collaborations with global titans like Kendrick Lamar and SZA.

Reflecting on the first edition of the festival in South Africa, Reese says it was overwhelming: “We've been building for such a long time in the US since we were 19, 20 years old. And to be able to come to international waters, to come to Africa and be able to pull off one of our largest events was ... inspiring, overwhelming, beautiful. It felt like Milk + Cookies became an overnight brand just out of the gate.”

The founders were deeply moved by the diversity of the South African audience. “I think it really hit me; it hit us in Joburg between the landscape of just 15000 people collectively,” Burton Jr said.