From her village roots in the Northwest to leading one of South Africa’s most creative production houses, Letitia Masina has built a life and career that embodies resilience, authenticity, and legacy. Having once walked the path of modelling, acting, and presenting, she made the conscious choice to step away from the spotlight and focus on what she truly loved: shaping stories, nurturing talent, and building spaces where creativity could thrive.

In this compelling episode of Listen To Your Footsteps, Letitia reflects on:

• Growing up in a rural village, navigating boarding school, and the journey that brought her to Johannesburg.
• Why she chose to leave the spotlight to tell stories behind the camera.
• Building Wife and Hubby Creative alongside her husband, and raising children who are also collaborators in the family business.
• How she reframes nepotism as intentional legacy building and why she believes in giving the next generation access and accountability.
• The responsibility of storytelling, balancing sensitivity with celebration, and why authenticity matters more than perfection.
• Adapting to new platforms where digital media reshapes how we tell and consume stories.

Masina speaks with warmth, honesty, and conviction about creativity as a legacy that outlives us, family as a foundation, and the importance of crafting stories that empower. Her journey offers not just inspiration but a model for how to build with integrity while nurturing both personal and professional growth.

Whether you know her as a producer, director, mother, or creative leader, this episode reveals why Letitia Masina’s work continues to shape South African storytelling and why her legacies reach far beyond the spotlight.

Listen now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Afripods, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.

You can find the latest from Letitia Masina on the following platforms:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn ⁠| ⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Recorded at Vodcast TV

Show Music by Kweku 'Taygo' Baffoe

Produced by Ayob Vania

From the dusty fields of Alexandra to the stadiums of Kaizer Chiefs, Mamelodi Sundowns, and Bafana Bafana, Brian Baloyi has lived the highs and lows of South African football. Known as Spider-Man between the posts, he now uses his voice and vision to teach lessons that go far beyond the game.

In this powerful episode of Listen To Your Footsteps, Baloyi reflects on:

• Why football is life’s greatest teacher, shaping resilience, discipline, and teamwork.

• The importance of planning for retirement early, and how he chose to leave on his own terms.

• His belief that true legacy lies in systems, not just money, and how generational wealth is secured through structure.

• The personal journey of navigating his wife’s cancer battle and choosing happiness as survival.

• How his Goalkeeping Academy aims to inspire the next generation to dream beyond borders.

Baloyi speaks with honesty, humour, and authority, sharing how criticism, failure, and pressure built the man he became, and why he now dreams, not just for himself, but for his children, grandchildren, and society at large.

Whether you know him as a legendary goalkeeper or meet him here as a mentor, father, and community builder, this is a conversation that shows why Brian Baloyi’s legacy stretches far beyond football.

You can find the latest from Brian Baloyi on the following platforms:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn | ⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠ | ⁠X [formerly Twitter]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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• zebra culture Newsletter

Recorded at Spotify Africa Joburg Studio

Show Music by Kweku 'Taygo' Baffoe

Produced by Ayob Vania

For over two decades, Kurt Schoonraad has been a defining voice in South African comedy, a storyteller whose career thrived on sharp wit, keen observation, and an intuitive understanding of people. In this episode of Listen To Your Footsteps, host Kojo Baffoe sits down with the Cape Town-born comedian, actor, and founder of the Cape Town Comedy Club to explore the unexpected twists and defining moments that have shaped his remarkable journey.

Growing up in Mitchell’s Plain, Kurt found humour not just a refuge but a calling. He reflects on the contrasting influences of his music-loving, free-spirited father and his mother’s strict discipline. Open and candid, Kurt shares his experience breaking generational cycles of abuse, approaching parenting with mindfulness, and the values he’s now passing on to his son. These insights reveal a man deeply rooted in community, yet unafraid to challenge norms, whether diving into the goth scene as a teen, confronting coloured identity stereotypes, or embracing stand-up comedy when the opportunity arose.

Kurt takes us behind the scenes of founding the Cape Town Comedy Club, a cornerstone of the local comedy scene. He reveals that owning the stage is very different from running it, and he openly discusses the toll this took on his energy, family, and career. When COVID-19 forced the club’s closure, Kurt faced not only the loss of a business but a creative identity crisis, one that ultimately drew him back to his original passion.

Rediscovering his spark meant shedding protective layers and infusing his comedy with more personal truths. This shift from “inside-looking-out” observational comedy to “outside-looking-in” vulnerability led to his most authentic work yet.

The conversation flows seamlessly between personal and professional realms, from restoring a cherished 1957 Chevy, which was sold to fund his comedy club, to raising an adventurous teenage son, to navigating cultural contrasts between Cape Town and Germany. Kurt also opens up about his adult ADHD diagnosis, how hyperfocus fuels his passions, and why he identifies chiefly as a communicator.

Listeners will appreciate behind-the-scenes tales from his cult-favourite unscripted travel TV series Going Nowhere Slowly, a precursor to modern reality travel shows. Throughout, Kurt’s reflections emphasize what truly connects people: listening as much as speaking, finding humour in life’s gaps, and never underestimating the power of timing, on stage and off.

In this episode, you’ll uncover:

• How a loving yet boundary-setting household shaped Kurt’s core values

• The influence of music and subculture on his worldview

• The highs and lows of building, and losing, a top-tier comedy club

• The profound impact COVID-19 had on his career and creativity

• The creative freedom gained by embracing vulnerability in performance

• Fatherhood lessons about presence, patience, and letting go

• The craft of storytelling through callbacks, pacing, and genuine connection

If you’re drawn to stories of resilience, reinvention, and authenticity, this episode offers both inspiration and craft-level insight. Kurt’s journey proves that setbacks often clear the way for more genuine expression and that navigating crashes can lead to even greater comebacks.

Whether you’re a comedy fan, a creative facing your own pivots, or simply someone who appreciates a heartfelt story, Kurt Schoonraad: Steering Comedy Through Crashes and Comebacks delivers a compelling blend of laughter, reflection, and wisdom.

Listen now and join us for a ride through the miles, mishaps, and moments that have made Kurt who he is, on stage and off.

You can find the latest from Kurt on the following platforms:⁠⁠⁠ ⁠Instagram⁠ | ⁠kurt.co.za⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Recorded at Spotify Africa Joburg Studio

Show Music by Kweku 'Taygo' Baffoe

Produced by Ayob Vania

What happens when you lose your father just four months after becoming one? How do you continue to show up, day after day, in an industry that demands your image but rarely sees your soul? And how do you transmute decades of pain into presence, craft, and a deeper way of being?

In this profoundly introspective episode of Listen To Your Footsteps, host Kojo Baffoe sits down with actor, producer, and creative multi-hyphenate Clint Brink for a conversation that peels back the public persona and gets to the raw truth beneath. From the emotional intensity of growing up in a politically active home during the tail end of apartheid, to his early defiance of expectations and entry into the world of television, Clint shares the story behind the story, a journey shaped as much by grief and sacrifice as it is by discipline and conviction.

Clint opens up about the personal costs of performance and the tension between celebrity culture and authentic living. He speaks candidly about the moment he realised acting wasn’t just a career, it was a calling. A spiritual discipline. A method of undoing ego and stepping into truth.

“Acting is not about fame and fortune. It’s about inspiring humanity. And that’s a weighty calling.”

This is not a typical actor interview. There’s no red carpet gloss here. Instead, Clint discusses what it means to be a Black and Coloured South African actor in a fragmented, still-young media industry, one that continues to sideline creators, deny royalties, and divide audiences by language and race. He recounts how, even after decades of consistent work, his return to the screen in Kings of Joburg was framed as a comeback by those unaware of his nine-year presence on Afrikaans television.

It’s in the intimate reflections on fatherhood and grief, however, where this episode reaches emotional depth. Clint speaks about his father’s passing, which happened exactly two years prior to the day of recording, and how he barely made it in time to say goodbye. That experience, layered with the responsibility of raising his own daughter, gave him new perspective:

“I want her to have a good nervous system. Peace. I’m building that, day by day.”

Through stories of struggle and self-reflection, he makes a powerful case for rethinking manhood, not as a posture of unemotional detachment, but as a practice of presence. He shares how martial arts, music, and mindfulness have helped him metabolise trauma and recalibrate his emotional compass.

The conversation also explores:

• The discipline of showing up after loss, and what it meant to return to work a week after burying his father

• Why he turned down a full scholarship after a national acting competition, and what that decision taught him about integrity

• The quiet trauma of always being underestimated, and how it shaped his pursuit of excellence

• His critique of the performance of masculinity, and why his greatest role is the one he plays at home

• How grief, when embraced, can deepen us and give meaning to the time we still have

“Your talent gets you in the room. But your story, that’s what transforms people.”

For listeners navigating personal transition, creative burnout, loss, or reinvention, this episode is a powerful reminder: you are allowed to grow slowly. You are allowed to change. And sometimes, the very thing that breaks you open is the thing that leads you back to yourself.

This episode is an invitation to rethink what it means to create, to love, to endure, and to work in a way that ultimately transforms you.

You can find the latest from Clint on the following platforms:⁠ Instagram | Twitter [aka X]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Recorded at Spotify Africa Joburg Studio

Show Music by Kweku 'Taygo' Baffoe

Produced by Ayob Vania

In this soul-stirring episode of Listen To Your Footsteps, Kojo Baffoe sits down with creative entrepreneur and cultural producer Theresho Selesho for a masterclass in navigating life at the intersection of culture, commerce, and community.

From his early days rolling cables in church to producing global music festivals and exhibitions, Theresho shares how a love for creativity evolved into a powerful career of building spaces, both physical and emotional, that connect people, ideas, and purpose. As the CEO of Matchbox Live and founder of Sho-Sho Communications, he opens up about what it truly means to build your own properties, create long-term value, and design a life that aligns with your spirit.

Listeners will discover the importance of structure in creative entrepreneurship, the emotional intelligence needed to manage high-profile talent and stakeholders, and how to navigate ego, purpose, and growth with intention. But this isn’t just a conversation about business. It’s also a raw, deeply personal look at fatherhood, partnership, and redefining success on your own terms.

Some key insights include:

• Why every creative needs to start with their first 15 supporters

• The difference between building for your children versus building in front of them

• How to protect your energy and establish boundaries in a world of hypervisibility

• The art of moving with or without external validation

Theresho’s philosophy is grounded, practical, and quietly revolutionary. He reminds us that the real work is not just building platforms, but engineering lives of meaning, for ourselves and the generations to come.

Whether you’re a young creative, a seasoned entrepreneur, a parent, or someone seeking clarity on your path, this episode offers a wealth of resonance and practical wisdom.

You can find the latest from Theresho on the following digital spaces: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠

For more on my book Listen To Your Footsteps, go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://kojobaffoe.com/book/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Episode Title: Theresho Selesho, Build It with or Without Them

Podcast: Listen To Your Footsteps

Host: Kojo Baffoe

Episode Number: 89

Guest: Theresho Selesho

Recorded at Spotify Africa Joburg Studio

Show Music by Kweku 'Taygo' Baffoe

Produced by Ayob Vania

What does it take to rebuild when your dreams come true, and still break you? In this profoundly moving episode of Listen To Your Footsteps, host Kojo Baffoe sits down with Caz Abrahams, a multi-hyphenate creative whose name lit up South African stages, magazines, television screens, and hearts, only to vanish at what looked like the peak.

But Caz didn’t disappear. He was descending into the valleys of grief, identity loss, and spiritual transformation. From child dance prodigy in Zimbabwe to Michael Jackson impersonator on South Africa’s biggest club stages, from model and presenter to father of six, Caz’s story spans industries and continents, but the thread that ties it all together is raw resilience.

He speaks openly about:

• Growing up without a father and losing his brother to suicide

• The heartbreak of losing a child during childbirth

• Stepping back from fame to raise his family and find healing

• Discovering faith and ancestral lineage as tools for transformation

• Launching his wellness podcast Strength Outta Struggle as a spiritual calling

Throughout the episode, we are invited into Caz’s private pain and public pivots. We hear how he got legal residence in South Africa by writing from the heart. How he almost became the next Milli Vanilli, and why he’s glad he didn’t. How the loss of a child changed everything. And how, today, he approaches life as a vessel of service, healing, and truth.

This episode is a balm for anyone who’s ever had to start over. It speaks to fathers, creatives, seekers, and survivors. It challenges the notion of success and replaces it with something more sustainable: spiritual clarity and emotional truth.

What you’ll take away from this conversation:

• A deeper understanding of how grief and purpose coexist

• The invisible cost of fame, and how to recover from it

• The healing power of storytelling and creative honesty

• A redefinition of masculinity, fatherhood, and spiritual leadership

• Why stepping away from the spotlight might be the ultimate act of strength

Caz Abrahams, Every Break Was A Message is not just a conversation, it’s a revelation. Watch/Listen to it now and let this soulful storyteller remind you that healing is the real performance.

You can find the latest from Caz on the following digital spaces: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠ | ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠or ⁠⁠⁠⁠check out the FitLife / Straight Outa Struggle Podcast

For more on my book Listen To Your Footsteps, go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://kojobaffoe.com/book/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Episode Title: Caz Abrahams, Every Break Was A Message

Podcast: Listen To Your Footsteps

Host: Kojo Baffoe

Episode Number: 88

Guest: Caz Abrahams

Recorded at Spotify Africa Joburg Studio

Show Music by Kweku 'Taygo' Baffoe

Produced by Ayob Vania

What happens when you refuse to fit into one box? When your life is not a single career path but a living, breathing ecosystem of music, fashion, media, and activism?

In this rich, wide-ranging episode of Listen To Your Footsteps, Kojo Baffoe sits down with cultural entrepreneur, publicist, designer, and DJ Maria McCloy. Maria’s name has been synonymous with Johannesburg’s urban culture since the 1990s, whether as co-founder of Black Rage Productions, through her signature wax-print shoes and accessories, or as the PR engine behind icons like Thandiswa Mazwai, Sjava, and Ladysmith Black Mambazo.

Born in the UK to a Mosotho mother and English father, and raised across Nigeria, Sudan, Mozambique, Lesotho, and South Africa, Maria’s journey is anything but conventional. Yet, as she shares in this candid conversation, each chapter, whether journalism, TV production, running a record label, or fashion design, has been guided by one consistent purpose: celebrating African creativity on its own terms.

Listeners will hear reflections on:

• ​The rise and fall of Black Rage Productions and its impact on South African media, music, and street culture
• ​How Johannesburg’s nightlife and creative spaces have evolved—and what’s been lost along the way
• ​The cultural politics of fashion, from wax prints to streetwear, and why “African aesthetics” should not be reserved for special occasions
• ​Pivoting from journalist to publicist, DJ, and designer, and why owning your platforms is non-negotiable
• ​The importance of pan-African consciousness, serendipity, and trusting your creative process

Maria speaks with the same wit and warmth that have defined her career, offering insights not only into her personal journey but also into broader conversations about media collapse, cultural preservation, and what it takes to keep creating when the rules keep changing.

Her story is proof that cultural impact isn’t built through trends or titles; it’s shaped by showing up, staying true, and evolving without permission.

Whether you’re a young creative wondering how to carve out a space or someone navigating the middle stages of a creative career, this episode will offer clarity, courage, and cultural context.

Listen now to hear why Maria McCloy is, and always has been, never just one thing ever.

You can find the latest from Maria McCloy on the following digital spaces: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn | ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠or ⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠

For more on my book Listen To Your Footsteps, go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://kojobaffoe.com/book/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Recorded at Spotify Africa Joburg Studio

Show Music by Kweku 'Taygo' Baffoe

Produced by Ayob Vania

Episode Title: Maria McCloy, Never Just One Thing Ever

Podcast: Listen To Your Footsteps

Host: Kojo Baffoe

Episode Number: 87

Guest: Maria McCloy

What does it mean to express yourself beyond the confines of job titles and creative labels? What happens when photography is no longer about the image, but about the connection it sparks?

In this powerful episode of Listen To Your Footsteps, Kojo Baffoe sits down with multidisciplinary artist and cultural entrepreneur Rhulani Anthony Bila, also known as The Expressionist. A commercial photographer, filmmaker, and founder of the creative consultancy Studio Bila, Anthony unpacks what it means to live, create, and collaborate with purpose.

Raised in Tembisa and shaped by books, music, and a relentlessly curious household, Anthony reflects on the evolution of identity, from being a kid who hated photographs to becoming someone who uses the camera as a bridge into the souls of others. As he tells it, “I’m strange and I’m odd. The camera is just an excuse. I’ve become a wandering nomad of human interaction.”

This episode explores:

• The tension between creative freedom and commercial responsibility

• How personal history, politics, and aesthetics intertwine in African storytelling

• The struggle to balance art, business, legacy, and rest

• Why COVID inspired his experimental film The Isolationist and a deeper commitment to family memory-making

• The idea that “you are not your skillset, you are your adaptability”

You’ll hear reflections on creativity not as a profession but as a way of thinking, and why the future of African storytelling lies in community, accessibility, and reclamation. Whether through fashion, film, or family portraits, Anthony is deeply committed to documenting human stories that matter, even when no one is watching.

This isn’t a conversation about chasing fame or aesthetic perfection. It’s about coming home to yourself, expressing the unspoken, and using every tool available, from Tumblr blogs to 16-hour film shoots, to make meaning in a complex world.

If you’ve ever felt like your art was more than just output, or if you’re navigating how to live more truthfully in your work and in your skin—this episode will resonate.

Listen now and hear Rhulani Anthony Bila reflect on becoming, belonging, and building a creative life that leaves space for uncertainty, wonder, and remembering.

You can find the latest from Rhulani Anthony Bila on the following digital spaces: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠or ⁠⁠anthonybila.com/⁠

For more on my book Listen To Your Footsteps, go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://kojobaffoe.com/book/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Recorded at Spotify Africa Joburg Studio

Show Music by Kweku 'Taygo' Baffoe

Produced by Ayob Vania

• Episode Title: Rhulani Anthony Bila, Wandering Nomad of Human Interaction
• Podcast: Listen To Your FootstepsHost: Kojo Baffoe
• Episode Number: 86
• Guest: Rhulani Anthony Bila

In this profound and quietly powerful episode of Listen To Your Footsteps, Kojo Baffoe sits down with Dr Sizakele Marutlulle, a creative strategist, leadership guide, brand thinker, educator, and diversity scholar, for a conversation that transcends labels and dives deep into the essence of human growth. What begins as a gentle reflection on bios, branding, and the evolution of personal tone slowly unfolds into an expertly guided walk in curiosity, courage, and self-definition.

Sizakele’s journey defies neat categorisation. She's led advertising agencies, lectured at Africa’s top business schools, mentored future female leaders, launched her own strategy firm, and earned a PhD in Critical Diversity. Yet, as this episode reveals, her greatest pursuit is not professional, it’s personal. She speaks of learning for the sake of humility, of returning to fear as a teacher, and of becoming “a reformed cow” with laughter, honesty, and grace. With each insight, she invites listeners to reimagine leadership not as dominance, but as deep listening.

Together, Kojo and Sizakele explore:

• What it means to live a multi-dimensional life, without apology.

• How personal branding has been distorted by social media, and why integrity matters more than performance.

• The idea of being “mentally obese but spiritually anorexic”, and the daily work of restoring balance.

• The influence of boarding schools, migration, under-fathering, and parental sacrifice on our sense of identity and belonging.

• Curiosity as a spiritual compass, and creativity as a way of thinking, not just producing.

There is something disarming about this conversation, its refusal to rush, its permission to wander. As Sizakele reflects on how her Dominican nun teachers shaped her worldview, how she navigated South Africa's cultural codes after studying in Eswatini, and how she continues to challenge herself to swim in new waters (both literal and metaphorical), the listener is offered a rare portrait of someone who has embraced contradiction as clarity.

She speaks candidly about burnout, bruising in corporate life, and stepping away to reassemble herself piece by piece. Her honesty about failure, fear, and her deliberate return to vulnerability, will resonate with anyone feeling trapped in performance and yearning for transformation.

This is a dialogue of mutual recognition. Kojo, in his signature style, offers his own stories of fatherhood, migration, literature, and spiritual reparenting. The result is an emotionally textured conversation that speaks to the parts of us that are still becoming, still breaking, and still learning to soften.

Whether you are a strategist, parent, teacher, artist, or simply a seeker, this episode offers language for the journey, questions for the silence, and a reminder that being curious enough to be afraid is often the first step toward something extraordinary.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• How to reframe fear as a gateway to growth.

• Why embracing multiplicity is more powerful than pursuing polish.

• What it means to show up as a whole human, at work, at home, and in the world.

• How curiosity, compassion, and creativity form the triad for conscious leadership.

This is not an episode to rush through. It is one to return to, on quiet walks, during moments of doubt, or when the path ahead feels uncertain. Because what Sizakele teaches us is not how to be right, but how to be real. And in a world obsessed with noise, her clarity cuts through like still water.

You can find the latest from Sizakele on the following digital spaces: ⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠ | ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠or ⁠sizakelemarutlulle.com

For more on my book Listen To Your Footsteps, go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://kojobaffoe.com/book/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Recorded at Spotify Africa Joburg Studio

Show Music by Kweku 'Taygo' Baffoe

Produced by Ayob Vania

In this stirring episode of Listen To Your Footsteps, Kojo Baffoe sits down with iconic South African singer, songwriter, and activist Simphiwe Dana, as she reflects on two decades of music, motherhood, loss, identity, and resilience. With trademark grace and searing honesty, Simphiwe offers insight into the making of a celebrated artist and a deeply personal reflection on womanhood, purpose, and the spiritual nature of creation.

Born in the Transkei and raised in Lusikisiki, Simphiwe’s childhood was shaped by movement, responsibility, and the discipline of being the firstborn. She shares vivid memories of growing up surrounded by nature—fetching water, hunting birds, and playing in rivers—which grounded her in a spiritual relationship with the world. This, combined with her father’s role as a preacher and the harmonies of church choirs, formed the foundation for her work: political, poetic, and rooted.

Listeners are taken back to a defining moment at Johannesburg’s 206 bar, where Simphiwe nervously took the stage at a poetry night, closed her eyes, and sang Jill Scott’s “A Long Walk.” The standing ovation led to her first televised performance and her acclaimed debut album Zandisile. Behind the success was a deliberate choice: to leave a career in IT and leap into the unknown, trusting only her instincts and her voice.

Dana speaks passionately about her creative process. For her, music is spiritual, a sacred act requiring silence, solitude, and surrender. “Something takes over,” she says. “It’s like standing on holy ground.” Her albums are milestones—emotional and political responses to moments that shift her understanding of the world.

The conversation also explores grief, especially after the loss of her mother. Dana shares how it made her stop talking, stop eating, and retreat inward. She relied on wine as a means of escape and still cannot bring herself to open her mother’s final messages. “I feel like if I do, I will fall apart, and I cannot afford to fall apart.”

Her identity as a mother and provider is a central thread. She raises two children as a single parent—both now university students. She reflects on performing with a baby on her hip, breastfeeding between studio takes, and relying on chosen family. Her parenting style is open to critique and deeply invested in emotional growth.

This episode also critiques the South African music industry and the country’s relationship with its cultural identity. Dana speaks about the lack of support for local artists, the devaluation of home-grown creativity, and the post-apartheid failure to rebuild cultural patriotism. “Play the music,” she says. “We’re not asking for charity. We’ve done the work. We just want to be heard.”

Now, marking 20 years in the industry, Simphiwe stands at what she calls “a precipice.” While working on a new album, she senses an internal shift. She is expanding her creative expression with a collaborative exhibition, a coffee-table book of unpublished writing, and signature aromatic oils.

If you’ve ever struggled with creative doubt, carried too much for too many, or wondered how to sustain your spirit, this conversation is for you. It’s about survival—but also softness. Rebellion, but also surrender. Holding on to wonder, even when life gives you every reason to let it go.

Simphiwe Dana is more than a voice. She is a vessel. And this episode is not just a story; it is an offering. Listen now.

You can find the latest from Simphiwe on the following social spaces: ⁠⁠⁠X | ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠or listen to her music on Spotify

For more on my book Listen To Your Footsteps, go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://kojobaffoe.com/book/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Subscribe NOW:

• ​⁠⁠⁠⁠Watch/Listen⁠⁠⁠⁠
• ​⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Zebra Culture Newslette⁠⁠⁠⁠r⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Recorded at Spotify Africa Joburg Studio

Show Music by Kweku 'Taygo' Baffoe

Produced by Ayob Vania