Fuelled by his love for music and the lessons his late brother taught him, professional keyboard player, Ruwayne Atties, from Humansdorp, will be joining an Asian-based band for the next year, doing what he loves most, playing the keyboard and entertaining music lovers around the world.
On the same day that he passed away, Ruwayne’s late brother, Earl Atties, taught him the basic keyboard chords.
Ruwayne was 11 years old at the time and more than two decades later, he continues to use his late brother’s investment as his main motivation to better his musical skills as a self-taught keyboard player.
“I always tell people that I do not play the piano, I feel it. So whenever they hear me playing, they will know that it comes from deep within. That is why I enjoy playing the piano,” said Ruwayne.
Despite having a deep passion for playing the keyboard for most of his life, it was only in 2010 when he formed The Sequence Band with two of his friends, Gerchim de Bruin and Sharlton Leo,that his professional music career began.
Ruwayne said his band developed the incredible skill to back any artistes, performing any genre, which enabled them to play alongside many major artists.
“With this skill we were able to back many major artistes in one night, each with their own different styles of music and different set lists,” said Ruwayne.
In 2016, the band was approached by South African YouTube channel, Hartland TV, to do a series of music events requiring them to back different artistes on various episodes.
The following year, Ruwayne, together with his bandmates, took another leap in their careers, when they were appointed as the lead keyboard players for SA singer PJ Powers, which saw them touring through Africa and spending a great deal of time in Kampala, Uganda.
When they returned to Humansdorp in 2017, the band signed with San Entertainment, a record label in Gqeberha, where they were able to further their musical careers by backing Idols finalists, actors, and many other music icons.
Finally, in 2019 Ruwayne was offered a job as a keyboard player with the El-Dorado Band of Suzhou in China, where he continued staying for one year, which he describes as the best experience of his life.
However, when he returned home in 2020, he found it difficult to get back to Asia, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Fortunately, one month ago, he signed a one-year contract with an Asian-based band when he will be travelling to various countries, starting in the Maldives on October 1.
“After being unable to travel and perform for more than two years, I am most looking forward to travelling again and living out my dream as a keyboard player,” said Ruwayne.
He further said most of the expenses for his trip had been covered, but to raise the outstanding fees, he recently hosted a show at Beachfront Nite Club in Jeffreys Bay, where he received a great amount of support from locals.
- For more information or to donate to his trip contact Ruwayne Atties on 067 315 9688 or e-mail him on Ruwaynebooking@gmail.com.
