After his unexpected TikTok success introduced him to a new audience, Fabbri is bringing his music and comedy to SPAR stores this Heritage Month.
South Africa (09 September 2026) – If you thought you knew what to expect from Eastern Cape entertainer Gino Fabbri, think again.
The 56-year-old comedian and performer is taking his show on the road this Heritage Month, but this time there is a little more amapiano, Gqom and Afro-house involved.
Fabbri is heading across the Sunshine Coast, Karoo and Garden Route for a series of pop-up concerts at SPAR supermarkets, bringing comedy, music, giveaways and his now-famous Afro-house-inspired drum solo directly into the heart of local communities.
It is the latest chapter in what Fabbri jokingly describes as his “Gino Fabbri 2.0” era. As a self-confessed Gen Xer, Fabbri initially thought TikTok was a bit ridiculous. He downloaded the app, deleted it twice, then eventually decided to give it another chance.
That turned out to be a pretty good decision.
Many South Africans know Fabbri for his Afrikaans “speed cop” character, complete with short shorts and long socks. So when he posted a video of himself performing a drum solo featuring a mashup of kwaito, Gqom, amapiano, deep house and Afro-house, the combination was unexpected.
The video attracted thousands of comments and introducing Fabbri’s music to a far more diverse audience than he had traditionally reached. That video, along with several others, has now clocked up more than eight million views.
“I’m getting thousands of beautiful comments like, ‘Give this guy two hectares [of farmland]’. It’s classic.”
More importantly, the response made Fabbri take a good look at where he was heading as an entertainer.
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His son Celso, a successful house-music producer and DJ, also got involved, helping his dad put together a list of 20 of the best “bangers” across different house-music styles for the drum solo.
The response to the performances eventually sparked another idea: why not take the show to the people?
Fabbri approached SPAR, a long-standing partner with whom he has worked on numerous projects over the years, and the Heritage Tour was born.
“It is a great reflection of what our brand stands for,” the retailer’s divisional advertising and promotions manager Dean de Koning said. Our stores are at the heart of their communities and Heritage Month gives us the opportunity to celebrate the people, traditions and local stories that make the province and Garden Route so special.”
For SPAR, having Fabbri front and centre makes the message even stronger.
“He has a genuine ability to bring people together through music, humour and shared experiences.”
He says there is a real need for more unity and happiness in his home province, and if he can contribute to that in even a small way, he is willing to give it a shot.
Fabbri believes Heritage Month should be about finding common ground rather than focusing on what separates people.
He points to the 2010 FIFA World Cup as an example of what can happen when South Africans rally around something together. Now he wants to bring a little of that spirit to supermarkets across the region.
The mini concerts will travel from Port Alfred to Wilderness, with stops along the coast and through the Eastern Cape’s hinterland.
And nobody needs to take themselves too seriously. The shows are open to “anyone who wants a bit of happiness poured on them”.
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