Paballo Basetsana Mothapo, popularly known as Pabi Cooper, is one of Amapiano’s fastest rising talents.
The Soshanguve-born musician is not only famous for making hits such as ‘Isiphithiphithi’, ‘Banyana Ke Bafana’, ‘Waga Bietjie’ and more, she is also a multifaceted young woman. She is a dancer, professional football referee, brand ambassador and most importantly, a boss.
Pabi Cooper broke into the music scene with ‘Isiphithiphithi’ in 2021, and we have witnessed her upward trajectory ever since. The 22-year-old is known for seizing and creating opportunities, as well as pushing boundaries and uplifting women.
Below are five reasons why Pabi Cooper is a boss:
She’s an effective leader in her field
While most celebrities are led by their teams, Pabi Cooper is an effective team leader. She is headstrong, with a sense of direction. She is a visionary, and her ambition is shown through the responsibilities she takes on such as positioning her passion for football in her craft.
She hosted her annual birthday celebration, Cooper F.C Shutdown this past weekend. She showed growth by hosting at a bigger venue, Sun Bet Arena compared to her first show at Zone 6 Venue last year where she broke the record as the youngest artist to sell out the Diepkloof venue.
She also acclaimed her new position on SABC 1 as a sports presenter during the 2022 World Cup.
She puts her shine on women
Pitori’s first lady is all about empowering women. Her management team mainly comprises women. With her Cooper F.C Shutdown this year, Pabi focused on giving a platform to emerging female artists such as dancer and vocalist, Jellybaby. “I love when women come together and do something together”, she told Drum last month.
She launched her own record label at age 21
Last year, the formidable musician launched her own record label, Cooper Entertainment, through which she has released most of her music, including her debut EP, ‘Cooperville’, in 2022.
She has partnership deals with renowned brands
In November last year, Pabi Cooper was announced as the new brand ambassador for one of SA’s most loved antiperspirant deodorants, Shield. Since being at the forefront of SA’s dance culture, she embodies the brand perfectly through her young energy and confidence. She has also maintained a long-term partnership with Sprite for over 18 months.
She cares for her craft
Pabi Cooper is very hands-on when it comes to her artistry. She once outsourced veteran singer Mariechan to train her vocally.
Last year, she roped in various artists and producers to create her latest EP, ‘Cooperville’. Pabi released a docuseries showing the process of creating the project where we got to witness the boss in action behind the scenes.
