The comedian, content creator and entertainment entrepreneur has performed across the region, taking his material to stages in South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Zambia and Uganda.
His regional appearances include the Heavyweights International Comedy Festival in Botswana, the Zed Laugh Festival in Zambia, the Lesotho International Comedy Festival and comedy showcases in Kampala, Uganda.
His appearance at HICOFEST also placed him alongside comedians from across Africa, adding another international stage to a career that has increasingly extended beyond Eswatini. For Dr Shakes, performing is only one part of the work.
The festival has hosted comedians from South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, China, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
That mix has made ECOFEST a meeting point for comedians and audiences from different countries, while giving local performers an opportunity to share a stage with established regional acts.
Dr Shakes has also built a career outside traditional stand-up comedy. His work includes digital content creation, brand partnerships, corporate entertainment and brand ambassadorship.
The combination has allowed him to use comedy and his online presence to work with brands seeking to connect with younger and more diverse audiences.
At the centre of it all, however, remains stand-up comedy. Dr Shakes has built his reputation around relatable storytelling and observations drawn from everyday life.
Worthnoting his performances are energetic and rooted in experiences that audiences can recognise, while his work through ECOFEST has given him another way to contribute to the development of the local comedy scene.
The festival has become an important part of that work. Rather than limiting the platform to established names, ECOFEST has created space for emerging comedians to perform alongside artists from other countries.
For local comedians, those exchanges offer another route to exposure. Dr Shakes has continued to move between performing, producing and developing entertainment projects, giving him a role that extends beyond being the person holding the microphone on stage.
His work has also attracted attention outside the country, with his growth and contribution to the local comedy ecosystem having been profiled by publications including The African Chronicle.
Performing in different countries requires a comedian to connect with audiences who may not share the same references, while still holding on to the identity that makes the material distinctive.
His work has consistently placed Swati humour at the centre of his performances, while the opportunities to perform elsewhere have allowed that humour to reach audiences outside the Kingdom.
That balance between local identity and regional reach has become a feature of his career. At home, he continues to produce shows and develop comedy platforms.
Outside Eswatini, he continues to perform on stages that bring him into contact with comedians and audiences from across Africa. The result is a career that is no longer confined to one stage or one format.
Through ECOFEST, he has also taken on the work of creating opportunities for other comedians. His contribution to Eswatini’s comedy industry therefore extends beyond his own performances.
The regional festivals he has appeared at, the artists brought into ECOFEST and the digital platforms he continues to use all form part of the same career.
For an industry still developing its infrastructure and audience base, those opportunities matter.
And for Dr Shakes, the work continues both on stage and behind it.
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