Durban, South Africa-
Damon Batiste, Founder of New Orleans Based NOSACONN Inc. (New Orleans South Africa Connection), of NOLA's (New Orleans, Louisiana) Royal Family of Music, fueled with news of the eleven Grammy Nominations of his first cousin, Oscar Award-winning, Jon Batiste, and knowing the purpose and power of the Arts, did not let the news of the new COVID-19 variant discovered in South Africa deter him from his mission of attending the KCAP (Kwa Mashu Community Advancement Projects) KAFF (KwaZulu-Natal African Film Festival) and reinforcing cultural arts trade talks.
"Some members of my business and cultural arts team were in flight or preparing to come to South Africa as the news hit about the new variant," said Batiste, Cultural Arts Ambassador from New Orleans and founder of NOSACONN Inc. "We were not deterred by the pandemic news. Artists are often the avant garde of societal change; so, my team stayed committed to the mission to initiate talks to help bring hope, healing and prosperity as we face this pandemic together."
